A Question Of Trust
by Kiddo
Summary: Bridger gets a visit of his nephew Oliver. Something happens between Oliver and Lucas. But which teenager will the Captain believe?
1. Chapter 1

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 1

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I do, however, own my little Lucas Wolenczak action figure. ;-) I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

I also don't have any rights to the book "The Gospel According To Larry," witten by Janet Tashjian.

Oliver Stevens, Bert Major, and the 5 scientists are products of my imagination.

As always, I have changed a few things from the show, so it's an AU. The story takes place during the first season and is a translation of my german story "Eine Frage Des Vertrauens."

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading.

* * *

Here are a few quotes from the book "The Gospel According To Larry," by Janet Tashjian: 

**...Then I remembered my conversation with Flip-Off a few days ago about changing the world. And the light came on as if after a power failure – I _was _changing the world. A tiny bit at a time, of course, but still. I was out there, I was contributing...**

* * *

**..._Change the world?_**

_**Did.**_

_**Are.**_

_**Can...**_

* * *

**...Josh Swensen became Larry for one reason – to contribute to the world. He believed we as humans were an endangered species, that the predators who would lead to our demise were ourselves. He had a laser-like mind that focused on one thing – looking inside instead of outside ourselves for answers. He was right about a lot of things... He was a boy who swung on swings, who could do the Python's Silly Walk routine verbatim, who wanted nothing less of himself than to change the world. **

* * *

**...But was the whole thing worth losing myself over, even temporarily? I think it was. I'd made mistakes, of course: caring more about my message than about the people in my life. Next time out I'd try to find a better balance.**

* * *

**I _could _change the world.**

**I'd just start with me this time.**

**An easier or more difficult task?**

* * *

The seaQuest was in open water, but the next morning, they would dock at the harbour, and the majority of the crew would leave to go on vacation. However, because of the fact that the science team of the seaQuest had an important experiment going, a few crew members had to stay and ship out later. This meant that five scientists, the whole senior crew, and Dr. Westphalen (as the sixth scientist and medical doctor) were staying behind.

Lt. Benjamin Krieg had been so kind as to take on the job of cook for the next few days. In doing that, he also wanted to prove to the others that something really delicious _could_ be cooked in the galley. In Ben's opinion, which he also shared with a lot of other people, the regular cook had truly failed at doing that.

In the evening, there came a knock at the captain's door.

"Come in!"

The seaQuest's chief computer analyst stepped into the captain's cabin.

"Oh, hello Lucas."

"Good evening sir, do you have some time?"

Captain Bridger nodded and pointed to a free chair. "Of course. What can I do for you?"

The teenager was fidgety and nervous as he slid into the chair. "I wanted to ask...if I could stay on the boat during shore leave?"

Nathan was surprised. "Where is this coming from? Aren't you looking forward to a small vacation?" But when Bridger thought back over the past week, he realized that Lucas had been very quiet, not a typical quality for the normally energetic teenager. Like everyone else, the boy needed his time off, but a whole week was really not normal.

"Not really. I've tried to reach my parents many times in the last couple of days, but I haven't been able to." The blond boy smiled sadly. "I don't think it would be such a good idea if I just showed up on one of their doorsteps. To tell you the truth, I'm also not very anxious to see them. I really don't want to meet my mom's boyfriend, and if I go to see my father, I propably won't get to see him at all. Plus, where my dad lives is totally boring, just some old rich people, thats all, no one who's my age or even close to my age. And I also really don't want to spend my shore leave alone in a hotel."

Captain Bridger nodded in understanding. "I can imagine that. But, if you keep trying to avoid seeing your parents, your relationship will never get any better."

The youngest crew member of the seaQuest groaned. "That's not only my fault!"

"I didn't say it was. I haven't forgotten what you told me about your parents." Nathan looked thoughtfully at Lucas for a moment. "Have you given up on your wish to have a good relationship with your parents?"

The teenager looked down and played with a button on his shirt. "Yes... I've tried so hard and so often. It just won't work." He shrugged his shoulders. "Sometimes, I just feel like I can't take it anymore. I'm not like a comedian; I can't act like nothing has happened and smile through everything. Something is totally wrong between me and my parents. I don't think there is any sense in thinking that things could to work out between us. Maybe there are some things on earth that just shouldn't be. Some tings are impossible."

The boy's words hit Nathan hard; the teen had given up. Bridger wished that Lucas and his parents had a different relationship. The teenager had told him a lot about his relationship with his parents in the past. The captain should have seen that the shore leave would be a problem for his young friend.

Only one time had he seen the young genius and his father together, the way they acted around each other. It had been at a conference where the presence of the seaQuest had been required.

Surprisingly, Dr. Wolenczak had found time to meet with Lucas and the captain at a restaurant and have dinner with them. The teenager had been totally against it from the beginning, but Bridger had insisted on getting to know Lucas' father, and he also thought that Dr. Wolenczak should know about the people his son was working and spending his time with.

The meal had been a spectacular disaster. The whole time, the atmosphere had been incredibly tense. Father and son had both tried to get along but without success. The whole thing had ended with each screaming loudly at the other and leaving in anger without saying goodbye.

Nathan had never seen Lucas act that way before; normally, the teenager hated arguments. The boy was one of the most peaceful people he had ever met. There were definitely a lot of things wrong between the young computer genius and his parents. And now, Lucas had given up. He was fed up with the arguments, being ignored, and being hurt. Sometimes, even the most optimistic person couldn't go on.

Nathan nodded. "You can stay."

The teenager smiled, relieved.

Bridger had a thoughtful expression on his face. "Maybe it's a good thing that you're staying here."

The young man looked questioningly at the captain. "Why?"

"Tomorrow my nephew will be coming to visit me for a few days." The young man nodded. The captain had told him about that some time ago. "I haven't seen him very often these past few years. It was different before. When Carol, Robert, and I lived near him and his parents, he visited us nearly every day. When we moved away, he still visited us every holiday. He's only a few years older than you, and with you here on the submarine, maybe he won't find it so boring. And besides that, you'll also have somebody closer to your age to talk to."

Lucas grinned. The captain was as excited about his nephew's visit as a little kid on his first day of school. "It would be really cool to have someone closer to my age on board to hang out with. Nothing against the crew, but as a teenager, you sometimes have other interests and things to talk about."

Nathan smiled. "I'm sure that you two will get along very well."

* * *

To Be Continued … 

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	2. Chapter 2

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 2

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to KatKnits00 and dolphinology for their reviews. Hope you both will also like the next chapter.

KatKnits00: Thanks for your kind words.

dolphinology: It's nice to hear that you like the title.

* * *

The next morning, Captain Bridger was standing in the docking bay. Those crew members who had been granted shore leave had already left the submarine. A very tall teenager came on board the seaQuest. He had short dark hair and brown eyes. Immediately, he walked over to the captain. "Uncle Nathan!"

"Hello, Oliver!" They hugged each other tightly. "Wow, you've grown a lot since the last time I saw you. You must be bigger than your father."

Oliver Stevens smiled. "Yeah, I've outgrown him."

Nathan nodded appreciatively and began realize that with each year, Oliver looked more and more like his dead son, Robert. He was sure that this was due to the fact that Carol and her younger sister looked almost like twins "How are Martha and Albert doing?"

"My parents are fine, and they wanted me to say hello from them!"

"Thanks! And how is college life treating you?" asked Bridger.

"Really good. But it is so much different from high school," explained the teen.

Nathan nodded in understanding. "I can imagine it what a big diffrence it makes to be suddenly living alone in New York, 500 miles away from your home."

Oliver nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yeah, from small town to big city. In the beginning, I felt kind of lonely there, but now I have made a few very good friends and I'm getting used to life in New York."

Captain Bridger took his nephew's suitcase. "So, lets get you to your cabin for the next few days."

The dark-haired teenager took his backpack and followed his uncle.

* * *

Half an hour later, Nathan was giving his nephew a tour of the seaQuest; he showed him everything. Their last stop was the Moon Pool.

Lucas was wearing a wetsuit and was swimming with Darwin in the water. When the blond boy noticed the captain and Oliver, he swam to edge of the pool. The strange thing was that the dolphin didn't follow him; he swam away.

The captain introduced the teenagers to each other. "Lucas, this is my nephew Oliver Stevens. Oliver this is our chief computer analyst, Lucas Wolenczak."

Oliver lifted one eyebrow. "Wolenczak? Are you any relation to the scientist Dr. Wolenczak?"

The young man nodded. "Yup, he's my dad."

"I see. Uncle Nathan told me that you've already finished at Stanford. It must be really cool to be finished with everything so soon. No teachers or classmates to get on your nerves or drive you nuts anymore."

The young genius laughed. "Yeah, that's a practical way of looking at it! But there are also people outside of school who can get on your nerves."

Captain Bridger acted horrified. "I hope you're not referring to me. Otherwise, I could send you to the kitchen and order you to peel potatoes!"

Lucas lifted his hands in defense. "Oh no, I would never dare that!" Then he smiled mischievously. "Besides, you can't order me to peel potatoes. The potatoes the seaQuest gets are already peeled!"

Bridger looked serious. "Oh, it wouldn't be a problem to change that for you Mr. Wolenczak!"

The blond teenager looked concerned; from the look on his face, he had believed every single word the older man had just said. But suddenly, both the captain and Lucas burst out laughing.

Oliver looked from one to the other. His uncle and the young man really got along well together. That would be pretty obvious to anybody. He could almost feel jealousy rising inside of him. Oliver could remember clearly how his uncle had talked about Lucas; even then he could feel that the Wolenczak boy was important to Nathan. There was more than just friendship that connected them.

After some thinking, the dark-haired teenager decided that this was better than anything he could have dreamed of, that it was playing right into his hands. The next few days could be very interesting. This could be the most fun he'd had in a long time!

* * *

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	3. Chapter 3

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 3

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to Sam, Wolenczak2004, KatKnits00 and dolphinology for their reviews.

Sam: Thanks for your kind words.

Wolenczak2004: Thanks, I hope the waiting wasn't to hard.

KatKnits00: Thanks fort he review. Yeah, I also think that it is a bad sign that Darwin swimms away.

dolphinology: Thanks for your review. That's the question, what does Darwin know but don't say?

* * *

The next day, the two teenagers were sitting on the edge of the Moon Pool, talking to each other. During the morning, Oliver had had a chance to meet the rest of the senior crew who had been very friendly to him. 

Lucas ran his hand through the water of the Moon Pool. Darwin was out in the ocean, hunting fish. "How do you like New York?"

Oliver fumbled with his shoelace. "The city is really great, and I finally can do what I want. I'm out of the reach of my parents, and they can't control me anymore. And, I've met some really cool people there!"

Lucas brushed a few strands of hair out of his face. "How are you financing collage? Are your parents paying, or do you have to work for it?"

"My dad pays half, and I pay the other half."

"I imagine that can get pretty stressfull."

Oliver shook his head. "No, not really, you just have to find the right job, and then it's no problem,"

The young genius raised his eyebrows. "What kind of work are you doing?"

The older teenager acted mysterious. "If I told you, I'd have to kill you!" Then he started to laugh and turned the conversation in another direction. "And how did you finance Stanford?"

The blond boy smiled. "I had a scholarship. If I didn't, my father would have probably had to pay the money. You know, there are laws against child labor!" Both had to laugh at the last comment.

Oliver suddenly looked Lucas over very closely. It was time to start his little game. "I think a friend of mine might have mentioned your name some time ago. Until now, I hadn't thought you could be the same Lucas. But actually, it's really quite obvious. I should have realized it the moment I met you."

The young man looked curious. "Who and what are you talking about?"

"Just someone that I knew from New York. You've been to Node 3, right?"

Lucas nodded. "Yes, but not long. Who are you talking about, and what has this person told you?"

Oliver gestured with his hand for Lucas to keep his voice down. "It's nothing, forget it. It's not really important."

The computer genius knit his eyebrows together, his tone of voice more persistent. "Who?"

"It's nothing!" The dark haired teenager heard steps coming towards them. He flashed a short smile at Lucas. Suddenly, he let himself fall back into the Moon Pool. Water splashed everywhere. Lucas jumped up in shock.

At that moment, Captain Bridger stepped into the room. He only saw Lucas stepping to the edge of the Moon Pool, and then his nephew appeared at the surface, snorting.

The blond teen bent over the edge of the pool and held his hand out to help Oliver. Nathan moved over next to the blue-eyed boy and saw with relief that his nephew seemed to be okay.

Oliver looked Lucas, who still held his hand out, up and down. "Forget it! I won't forgive you that easily!"

Bridger stood up and took notice: what had happend between the two boys?

Lucas looked curiously at the older teenager. "What?"

Oliver climbed out of the pool, water dripping off of him. "Don't pretend to be an angel! You know exactly what I mean!"

Captain Bridger cut into the conversation. "Could somebody please explain to me what just happend here?"

Before Lucas had the chance to say anything, Oliver began to speak. "We were just talking. Then I made a stupid comment, and before I know it, Lucas pushed me into the Moon Pool!"

The young genius' eyes became as big as saucers. "I did what? Are you off your rocker?"

Oliver looked crossly at Lucas. "You know what I'm talking about. You could at least admit what you did!"

Nathan looked from one teen to the other. Which one should he believe? Lucas, who he had known for four months, who he felt responsiple for, and in whom he saw a kind of son? Or his nephew, who he had known since his birth? Neither of the boys had ever lied to him before now. Lucas was not one to answer with violence when he was provoked. The young man's weapons were intelligence and and a quick wit. Words were his self defence. But Oliver was also not someone who made up stories just to harm someone else. And why would his nephew do this?

Who should Bridger believe in this case? "Oliver, could it be that you just lost your balance and that it only seemed like Lucas pushed you?"

Oliver looked at Nathan with an insulted expression on his face. "Great, just great. My own uncle thinks I'm a lier!"

The captain shook his head. "I haven't said that I believe one of you over the other. I just have to think of every possibility.

The dark-haired teenager nodded. "Okay, I'm sorry, it's just that I can't stand unfairness."

Lucas gave the other boy a look that told exactly what he thought of him.

"Perhaps we're both to blame. I shouldn't have made that comment. It was really mean of me!" Oliver lowered his eyes.

"What did you say to Lucas?"

"I really don't want to repeat it. I'm not proud of it. Maybe if I had been in his shoes and his age I would have also reacted that way."

Nathan now looked to his youngest crew member. "What did he say to you?"

Lucas shrugged his shoulders. "I have no idea. He hasn't made any mean comments to me, and I didn't push him in the water. Please, you have to believe me!"

Oliver looked disgusted at the blond teenager. "Coward! If you've done something, you have to accept the consequences of it."

Anger was rising in the genius; he felt the unfairness of the situation rising. "Are you nuts? Dammit, what are you doing?"

Captain Bridger looked reproachfully at Lucas. "Watch your tone!"

Lucas looked darkly at the captain; now he really felt like he was being treated unfairly. He was used to the fact that his parents never believed him or listened to him, but now it seemed that Bridger was turning against him. He hadn't expected that. He had to get out of there. "Thanks! I should have known that you take his side!" The teenager turned around and walked angrily towards the exit.

Nathan called after him. "Lucas, I'm on no one's side!"

Before the computer genius made it out of the room, he turned around one last time. "If you say so." Then, he disappeared.

The captain turned to his nephew. The boy in front of him was still dripping wet. Bridger felt the guilty part of his conscience calling. He should have send Oliver to change his clothes before anything else. He just hoped the boy wouldn't get sick; the water in the Moon Pool was very cold. "Go and change into something different. When you're dry again, you come to my cabin, and we'll talk about the whole thing."

As they both went their separate ways, Oliver couldn't hide his smile.

* * *

To Be Continued … 

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	4. Chapter 4

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 4

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to wolenczak2004, Sammi, dolphinology, KatKnits00 and Lynnp for their reviews.

wolenczak2004: Thanks for your kind words.

Sammi: Thanks, I hope this is soon enough.

dolphinology: Thanks! Yeah, what could Oliver be up to…?

KatKnits00: Thanks for the review. Yeah I also think problems are coming towards Bridger, two teenager who say diffrent thinks. Which one will the Captain believe? – It's a question of trust!

Lynnp: Thanks!Yeah, poor Lucas!

* * *

Captain Bridger knocked at the door of his youngest crew member's cabin. When he received no answer, he just stepped into the room. His gaze went slowly over the untidy cabin. He could see right away that the boy who had caused this chaos wasn't there. He decided to try again later or possibly tomorrow. It was already evening after all. Maybe this was for the best; he was giving Lucas time to calm down.

* * *

Some time later, Oliver was sitting in his uncle's cabin. "I want to hear about everything that happened at the Moon Pool."

Oliver took a sip of tea out of a mug with the seaQuest logo on it. "There's really not much to tell you. Actually, you've already heard it."

"Nevertheless, please tell it again."

"Okay. We were standing by the edge of the Moon Pool talking about a lot of different things. While we were talking, I realized that Lucas and I had a mutual acquaintance. We talked a little bit about this person and about the things connected with him. Then, I made a very mean comment and Lucas pushed me in the water without warning. I really wasn't expecting something like that, so I lost my balance and fell into the water."

Captain Bridger nodded in understanding. "I see. But could it be that he pushed you unintentionally? Maybe he just moved slightly and brushed against you."

Oliver Stevens shook his head. "Unfortunately not. If you had seen it, you would know that he wanted to push me into the pool."

Nathan observed his nephew closely. He could see that there was somthing more going on in the the teenager's mind, but it seemed that Oliver didn't know how to tell him. "You know that you can talk to me about anything. I can tell that there's something else you want to say."

Oliver was squirming in his seat. "I really don't know if I should telll you this. I don't want Lucas to have any problems because of me."

Nathan looked at his nephew. "Do you think it's something that could get Lucas in trouble?"

The dark-haired teenager nodded. "Yes."

"Well wouldn't it be better if I know about it then?"

Oliver thought about it for a moment. "Yeah, I guess so. Maybe you already know about it. Lucas told me about it when we talked about Node 3. I think he wanted to impress me. Do you know about what happened there?"

"Just roughly. He told me a litte bit but not every detail."

Oliver took another sip of his tea. "Did you know that he hacked into the World Bank?"

Bridger was aghast, and his voice got louder. "He did what?"

"He hacked into the World Bank himself," the teen said again.

"I would never have guessed such a thing! Are you really sure about this?" Bridger hoped that Oliver would shake his head indicating that he was joking.

But to his disappointment, his nephew nodded. "Yes, absolutely. He told me about it, but I had already known about it from our mutual acquaintance. You know that Lucas has the skills to do it."

Nathan nodded absently. "I know, he's incredible on a computer."

Oliver had put his cup down and was playing at his watch. "Lucas won't get in trouble now because of me, will he? I really don't want that!"

Bridger smiled encouragingly at his nephew. "Don't worry. Lucas is responsible for his actions, not you. If he does something, he has to accept the consequences."

Oliver looked at his uncle. "Please don't tell him that you heard this from me. It seems that he already doesn't like me. I don't want him to believe that I made him look bad in front of you."

Bridger nodded. "I'll try to keep you out of this, but I can't promise you anything." The captain of the seaQuest looked at his watch. "It's really too late to talk to him now. But I will do it first thing tomorrow."

Oliver stood up and yawned. "I think I'll head to bed. Goodnight, Uncle Nathan."

"Night Oliver."

Captain Bridger was now alone in his cabin. He was disappointed in his youngest crew member. He had always thought that Lucas and he had a special relationship. And now this! Why hadn't the boy told him about this?

They had always been able to talk about everything. Or had the teenager kept other things secret? How could the boy be so stupid as to hack into the World Bank? What did the teen do there? What would have happened if Lucas had gotten caught doing that? This wasn't a child's prank! The World Bank wasn't some sort of game. He really had to have a serious man to man talk in the morning...

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	5. Chapter 5

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 5

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and KatKnits00, Swasti, dolphinology, wolenczak2004, kokomocalifornia and sweet me for their reviews. You made my day.

KatKnits00: Thanks! It's nice to read your interpretation.

Swasti: Thanks!Yeah, I really wished that Darwin would say what he senses about Oliver. You say it, poor Lucas!

dolphinology: Thanks! Interesting to read that someone ishooked because of my writting.

wolenczak2004: Thanks for your kind words! I think nobody has called one of my stories spezial before….

kokomocalifornia: Thanks for your kind words! How evil is Oliver? That's a good question!

sweet me: Thanks for your review. I hope this is soon enough.

* * *

At 2 o'clock in the afternoon of the next day, Captain Bridger stepped into the Hydroponics Lab. This lab was for experiments with plants, but it looked more like a hothouse than a laboratory on a submarine.

Lucas was sitting in one corner of the room between some big plants; he was bent over a book. When he heard someone else, he looked up from his reading "Oh, hello, Captain. What are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to ask you the same thing."

The teenager thought for a moment. "I like coming here to think or if I want to be alone. It's a good hiding place. Or it was until now."

Nathan smiled at the boy. "I won't tell anyone about it. Your secret is safe with me. But you really could have told me about this before, or you could have taken your PAL along - I was looking for you all morning!"

Lucas looked away, slightly shamefaced. "I'm sorry; I didn't think that anyone would be looking for me."

Bridger nodded. "It's alright. Do you hide here often?"

The blond teenager shrugged. "Sometimes. It's always quiet here, and no one disturbs me. It's the perfect place if you need a time-out."

The captain nodded in understanding. It seemed that what happened the day before had really affected the boy. If Bridger had stopped to think, he would have realized that his anger had disappeared, and he was left with the great disappointment he felt.

But now, when he observed the teenager closely, he also felt pity. Nathan knew that Lucas hated arguments and always tried to get around them. "No one has seen you eat breakfast or lunch."

The young man nodded. "I wasn't hungry."

Bridger looked disbelievingly at the boy. "Not hungry?"

Lucas thought back to earlier in the day when he had met the commander. Oliver had told the whole crew his version of what happened at the Moon Pool. "Ummm...I also wasn't keen on getting told off a second time. The lecture from Commander Ford was really enough for one day."

Again Nathan nodded in understanding. That was also typical for the teenager. Sometimes, the boy used his intelligence and wit in a confrontation, and other times, he just let it happen without saying anything so that it would be over faster. Until now, the older man had always thought that Lucas was a fair and honest person, but now he had the feeling that he didn't really know who the teenager was.

Captain Bridger decided that it was time to start talking about what happened the day before. "You still say that you didn't do anything wrong yesterday?"

Lucas immediately knew what the captain was referring to and nodded emphatically. A few strands of hair fell into his face.

"Okay, but there is something else we have to talk about." The teenager raised his eyebrows questioningly. "When you were at Node 3, you hacked into the World Bank, am I right?"

For a moment, the young genius was speechless. Then, he nodded. "Yes. Where did you hear that from?"

Bridger was disappointed - until now, he had hopped that Oliver had been lying or had misunderstood something and that Lucas hadn't done the hack. "It's not important where I have the information from, the point is why did you do it?"

The blond teenager thought about it. What was the best way to explain it to the captain? He knew that he had made a mistake with the hack. "Someone made it look like a good idea to me, and he knew which buttons to push to get me to do it."

Nathan shook his head. "Lucas, you are intelligent enough to know that was wrong. I thought you knew the difference between right and wrong. I thought you had personal limits... Lucas, the Word Bank is not a game!"

The young man felt anger rising in him. The captain wouldn't even let him explain what had really happend. His defiance was rearing up quickly. "I _know_ that the World Bank is not a game. You don't need to explain that to me! And besides, may I remind you that I have also hacked into a few things for you?"

Bridger knew that the teen's last point was accurate. "Lucas, that is something different, and you know it. Yes, I have asked you to hack into one or two things, but not into the World Bank! And besides that, my requests have always had very good reasons."

_There was also a good reason behind the World Bank, or so I had thought!_ shot throguh the young man's mind. Slowly, the situation was deteriorating. "I have the feeling that you have already decided that I'm the bad one. You won't even give me a real chance, and you don't want to hear what I have to say!" The teenager's voice got louder.

"Please don't use this tone of voice, Lucas. I have the feeling that I don't really know you. First, there's what happened at the Moon Pool, and now I find out about the World Bank!" Bridger's voice was getting louder too.

The computer genius stood up and grabbed his book. "I think you really don't know me! If you did, you would know that I didn't push Oliver in the Moon Pool."

The captain shook his head. "I just find out that you have kept something big from me. Please tell me what else I'm supposed to think? Put yourself into my shoes, and tell me what you would think!"

Lucas glared angrily at Bridger. He was getting madder and madder; he hated it when people treated him unfairly. This morning, he had been able to keep his cool when the commander had spoken to him, but now with the captain, a person he had always looked up to, he couldn't hold it in any longer! "You know what? You can think of me what you want! To tell you the truth, I couldn't care less about it! You can get stuffed!"

Nathan gasped for air; he had never seen his youngest crew member like this. "I refuse to be talked to like that, young man. I'm starting to question whether or not this is the right place for you. Maybe I should contact your father when this week is over!"

The book fell out of the teen's hand. The captain's words really hurt. Bridger knew that he wasn't getting along with his parents and that he felt like the seaQuest was his home. He gave the captain an agonized look. "Maybe you should do that. After all, you would finally get rid of me!" Lucas turned around and ran from the lab.

"Lucas!" Bridger shouted after the boy but couldn't stop the teen. Nathan felt the guilt in him rising. He had let the young man provoke him. The captain would never send the boy back to his parents, he wouldn't have the heart to do it. Why had he said that? He knew that he had hurt Lucas unbelievably deeply with his comment. The whole conversation had gone in the wrong direction.

Bridger's glance fell on the book lying on the floor. He picked it up and looked at the title. 'The Gospel According To Larry' by Janet Tashjian. He took the book with him and walked out of the room. He really had to tell the boy how sorry he was as soon as possible.

* * *

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	6. Chapter 6

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 6

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to dolphinology, KatKnits00, Sammi, wolenczak2004, Swasti and kokomocalifornia for their reviews.

dolphinology: Thanks fort the review! Yes we all knew that Lucas likes electric stuff but I also thinks that he likes the nature. It wasn't so obvious like his love for thinks like computers but I think it was also between the lines. I just have to think of the Vocoder and that Darwin was kind of his best friend. Nobody would design a Vocoder if he wouldn't like dolphines.

KatKnits00: Thanks for your review. Again it is interesting to read your ideas to the story.

Sammi: Thanks!

wolenczak2004: Thanks. Yeah I got the idea.

Swasti: Thanks for your kind words. In one of the latter chapters you will read why Oliver is acting like that. I can't tell you now because if I would do this I would ruin my whole story. Your last sentence makes me turn red.

kokomocalifornia: Thanks! So this chapter is 10 pages long, I don't want to hear anybody complaining that this is to short!

* * *

The next two days weren't very pleasant for anyone on the crew. A tense atmosphere was permeating the whole submarine. The little crew knew that their captain and youngest crew member had had a serious argument, but no one knew what the argument had been about exactly.

Only Benjamin Krieg, Tim O'Neill, and Dr. Westphalen were totally convinced that Lucas had been innocent with what happened at the Moon Pool. The rest of the crew just didn't know what to believe. Their experiences with the blond teenager had shown him to be an honest person, but believing in Lucas' innocence also meant that they believed Oliver was a liar. On the other hand, Bridger's nephew seemed to be really friendly.

And besides that, they also realized that their captain had his doubts, and he was the person who knew the two teens the best.

The five scientists on board were convinced that Oliver was the one telling the truth. In their eyes, it was only a matter of time before Lucas lost it. It was clear to them that something had to be wrong with the blond boy. Why else had his father sent him as far away as possible if that wasn't the case? Lucas could very well have worked for Dr. Wolenczak's company. There had to be something wrong with the boy.

Dr. Westphalen could only shake her head about that theory. Pure jealousy directed at the young genius was coming through with their words.

* * *

Lucas had the feeling that the days were growing longer and longer. Under no circumstances did he want to speak with the captain. For one thing, he was still mad. He was also afraid that he would say something stupid because of his anger. And another thing was that he wasn't very happy about the argument with Bridger. The boy had said things that he hadn't meant and now he was embarassed about it.

The computer genius knew that he should talk about the argument with the captain and discuss the connected feelings, but he didn't want to talk and felt that he couldn't do it now anyway.

It was getting harder and harder for Lucas to keep out the captain's way. It was like Bridger had installed a locator on him. At one point, the blond teen had only been able to disappear before Bridger could find him by climbing into an air shaft.

Sadly, Darwin was also not around to talk to. The animal had met another pod of dolphins and wanted to swim with them for a few days. But Lucas also had the feeling that Darwin didn't like Oliver.

* * *

Since the argument, Nathan Bridger hadn't had the chance to tell his youngest crew member how sorry he was. Every one of his attempts had not worked. The boy always managed to go out of his way to avoid him. It was like Lucas could sense when the captain was near him and could immediately disappear. The genius knew the boat like the back of his hand; no hiding spot was cocealed from him. And his thin frame also made it easier for him to disappear.

Bridger just didn't know who to believe. Yes, Lucas had made a mistake by hacking into the World Bank, but Nathan realized that didn't necessarily mean that the blond teen had pushed Oliver into the Moon Pool. Normally, he felt like he knew Lucas and knew he could believe him. Had he only believed his nephew because he looked and reminded him of Robert? If Oliver had lied to him, then it was very possible that he had lost Lucas' trust forever. He really had to tell the boy that he hadn't seriously meant the comment about his father.

Nathan looked at the table in his cabin; lying on the desk was the book that the computer genius had left behind in the lab. Lucas was a bookworm; he read books of all different sorts. Because of the fact that no one had enough room in his or her cabin to own many books, the teenager often borrowed books from the other crew members. Lucas had already read each book that interested him in some way from the senior crew, and it seemed that there was no topic that the teenager wasn't interested in. The young man also read books that were published on the Internex. However, in spite of the fact that he was a computer freak, he preferred real books a thousand times over reading them on the Internex.

Bridger had read "The Gospel According To Larry" the day before, just out of curiosity. The book cover looked interesting, and it had turned out that way. The book was about a highly intelligent teenager, with the pseudonym Larry, who wanted to change the world. He had his own Web site on the Internet on which he ranted against consumerism, polluting the environment, materialism and obsession with celebrities, the ad industry and appeals for more tolerance and more open contact with other human beings. More and more people visited the Web site and became enthusiastic because finally someone was addressing a major problem out loud! With every day, the number of fans grew; people from all over the world were reading his message and were affected by it.

But no one knew who was really behind the Web site; no one knew Larry's real name and who he was. A few fans tried to find out who Larry really was, and after some time, one of them found Larry's real identity and made it public. Larry became a star and his whole life began to change because of the fact that everybody knew him. But that was exactly what Larry never wanted. He never wanted to become famous, he just wanted to change the world.

Finally, Larry saw just one way out and faked his own suicide. Larry's faked suicide reminded Bridger of the Regulator, who had also faked his own death. Lucas had said that he could understand that. Nathan had been shocked by that comment and still was. He just could hope that the teenager never felt forced to go to those measures.

The captain took the book in his hands and opened it. He flipped from one page to the next, and when he reached Lucas' bookmark, he stopped. It was a simple yellow piece of paper, and written on it was an address and a vidphone number. It was from a Nick. Bridger knew that that was the red-haired boy from Node 3 that Lucas had met there but also talked to via Internex, under the name of Wolfman, before.

Nathan looked at the vidphone number. He really wanted to know what exactly had happened at Node 3. Maybe he had treated Lucas unfairly. After all, he hadn't really listened to what the teenager had to about it. Who knew what had really happened there? But he wouldn't get answers from his youngest crew member now. After all, it wasn't possible to get a answer from a person that wouldn't even listen to you. And listening could only happen if he could catch the boy, and that was, at the moment, kind of impossible.

Nathan took a white piece of paper and placed it at the point in the book where Lucas had stopped reading. Then, he took the yellow one and dialed the number that the blond teen had written on it.

After a few moments, the face of a red-haired teenager appeared on the screen. His hair was shoulder long, and he was wearing sunglasses. "Yeah?"

Bridger recognized Wolfman. He had only seen him very briefly, but he was sure that it was Nick. "Hello, my name is Captain Bridger from the seaQuest. I don't know if you know who I..."

Nick took the sunglasses off. "I know who you are, Lucas has told me about you. Is everything okay? Is he alright? Has something happened?"

The older man smiled inwardly. Lucas had spoken about him! The teens had to be very good friends if the one was immediately worried about the other one. "No, no, something has happened but nothing like an accident or anything like that. Lucas is okay, so you can calm down. But I had a argument with him."

Wolfman looked disbelivingly at the captain. "An argument? With Frankenstein? If that happened, you really must have done something to make him see red. Are you sure that we're talking about the same person?"

Nathan Bridger nodded. "Yes, and I think I really did step on his feet. He hasn't spoken to me for the past two days, and he's avoiding me!"

Nick whistled through his teeth. "Wow. What was it about?"

"His hack into the World Bank."

Wolfman's eyes became big. "You know about that?"

Bridger nodded. "Yes, but only since about three days ago. Someone else told me about it, and I was mad!"

Nick looked inquisitively at the captain. "Were you mad about the fact that Lucas hacked into the World Bank or that he wasn't the one to tell you about it?"

The captain was surprised; this young man was really smart. "Both! But to tell you the truth, I don't really know why he did it. He kind of avoided my questions at the time, and then I didn't really give him the chance to defend himself. Could you maybe tell me what really happened at Node 3?"

Nick hesitated. Should he really tell the captain everything? Lucas probably had a good reason for why he hadn't told the man himself. "I don't know if I can tell you about it."

"Please, it's very important. I have to know why Lucas did it. I have to know if I've done something very wrong! And besides, there's something else he's been accused of."

Wolfman thought for a moment, and then he made his decision. "Would it help Lucas if I told you now what really happened?"

Bridger nodded slightly. "It's very possible. The truth would help me a lot."

Finally, Nick nodded. "Okay, but I'm only telling you because it will probably help Frankenstein. Do you remember why we contacted the seaQuest?"

"Yes, you needed modules," said the captain.

The red-haired teenager shook his head. "That's not quite the truth. We lied to you about that. We contacted the seaQuest for one special reason, and that was Lucas!"

It was clearly visible how surprised Bridger was. "But why?"

Nick smiled. "Because we needed the best hacker in the world!"

Bridger was speechless. He knew that Lucas was good, but was he that good? "Lucas is the best...?"

"Yeah, at the moment, Frankenstein is the best you can find. He's a legend, a myth, even if he won't admit it. But that's typical for Lucas Wolenczak. I'm sure that he's never told you how good he is. He knows that he's very good, but he won't admit it to himself." Nick smiled mischievously.

Bridger nodded. "Everyone on the seaQuest knows that Lucas is good. He also has a healthy amount of confidence at the computer. But he's really never said that he's the best." Nathan thought about it for a moment. "Does the UEO know how good he really is?"

Wolfman shook his head, strands of his long hair falling into his face. "Of course not. I'm sure they would have told you if they knew. Most of the time, only the hackers know who among them is the best. Frankenstein is the only one who was ever able to hack into the World Bank."

Nathan thought about what the teenager had just said. "So you contacted us so that Lucas would hack into the World Bank?"

The boy confirmed this with a nod. "Yeah, that about sums it up. We had all tried to hack into the World Bank, but not even Mycroft was able to do it. Until then, he had called unbeatable at the computer. The only person we could think of that might be able to do it was Frankenstein, so we tried to find out who he really was and where he was. After we cracked the UEO codes, we knew that he was on the seaQuest."

Bridger looked angry. "You cracked the UEO codes?"

"Shoot, I shouldn't have said that. But we really didn't do anything bad there, that's a promise!"

"I hope so. I always thought that the UEO codes couldn't easily be broken."

Nick shook his head slowly. "Oh, believe me they aren't, but nothing is impossible. You really should let Lucas take a look at those codes. I know that if Frankie designed the system, then nobody would have the chance to break into it. Just like the seaQuest. Since Lucas created the anti-hacker sytem for the seaQuest, nobody has been able to break into it." Wolfman grinned proudly. "The best anti-hacker systems are written by the hackers themselves!"

The captain found this interesting, but what he really wanted to know was what had happened at Node 3. "What happend after the seaQuest left?"

"Mycroft showed him a little bit more of the computer system and what he could do with it. For example, how he could change the world for the better and how he could prevent election fraud. Mycroft did some pretty impressive things. First, he took Lucas into his confidence and demonstrated the nature of our work by transferring humanitarian funds that were stolen by a defense minister to a hospital in China. Then, he gave Lucas an assignment to monitor election fraud in South America. A little bit later, he told Frankie why he was really asked to come to Node 3, because of the World Bank. He tried to convince Lucas to hack into their system, because that was our only chance to get into the World Bank. Mycroft told Frankenstein that we could help the world by gaining control of the World Bank, that we could change the world. And, he said that Lucas could end some of the world's pain with his hack. For example, that he could prevent war."

Nathan hung on every word that Wolfman said. He could understand that Mycroft's words could make a strong impression on someone young.

"After some hesitation, Lucas tried to hack into the Word Bank, and as you already know, he succeeded. We were so excited about it. Frankie had given us access to their computer system. But, we enter it immediately; we wanted to do it later. Some time later, Julianna, Lucas, and I talked about Mycroft. We realized that we didn't really know anything about Mycroft's life before Node 3. As you can imagine, Frankie and I decided to do a little bit of research about it. The answers that we found shocked us quite a bit. Mycroft had worked for two sides, for both NORPAC and the CIA, and he also killed a man. Mycroft noticed what Lucas and I were doing. He explained to us what he had done in the past but couldn't convince us that what he had done was right or okay. He said something like the World Bank was his apology to the world. Later, Julianna, Lucas, and I spoke again about everything. Frankie was convinced that Mycroft's real reason for obsessing over the world's evils was his guilt over the murder and that Mycroft had lost touch with reality. Lucas also thought that we shouldn't hack the World Bank, that the system was much to unstable and that we could create some big damage there. We could cause financial chaos and a lot more."

Nathan felt pride that Lucas had realized his mistake.

"I think after that, he talked to you on the vidphone. I think that's when he decided what to do."

Bridger could clearly remember the conversation. He'd had the feeling that the teenager was preoccupied and that something was wrong.

"When we went to enter the system, Lucas shut the link to the World Bank down. Mycroft got really angry about it, but Frankie was great. He explained that the world's problems could only be solved when people came to know each other, one by one, and that the World Bank wasn't some kind of computer game. Mycroft attacked Lucas and tried to strangle him. I think he would have really killed Frankenstein if I hadn't pulled up the pictures from his first murder. Only when he saw the pictures did he realize what he was just doing, that he was about to kill a second person. Lucas said that hiding behind machines, photons, and computer controls was no solution and ultimately sparks violance. You had to know who to help to be able to help. Finally, Frankie managed to convince Mycroft to let go of the World Bank. You would have been proud of Lucas!"

Bridger nodded. He was very proud of the boy. Yes, he had made a mistake when he hacked into the World Bank at first, but after that, he had reacted well and done everything right. He should be proud of his youngest crew member. He felt almost a fatherly pride, even though Lucas was not his son. He would do a lot to have a son like Lucas and couldn't understand how the Wolenczaks could care so little about their son. Unfortunately, having a child didn't immediately turn you into perfect parents, and it didn't matter how much money you had. "Nick, I'm really thankful that you saved Lucas from Mycroft's attack. Who knows what would have happened if you hadn't done that. And thank you very much for telling me everything. You can't imagine how much you have helped me. I have really treated Lucas unfairly. I really need to tell him how sorry I am!"

Wolfman looked at the captain curiously. "I have no idea what all of this was really about, but whatever you do, it will probably be exactly the right thing."

Nathan had to smile about the teenager's last comment. Wolfman and Lucas were really meant to be each other's friends. "Okay. Goodbye, and thanks again for telling me!"

Nick grinned. "No problem, Captain, but there is something else that I have to tell you."

"What is it?"

"You already knew that Lucas realized his mistake, but he also did something else. He contacted the World Bank and told them that he had hacked into their system. Frankie was unbelievably lucky that they didn't immediately call the police. Instead, they made a deal. Lucas improved their system and in exchange for that, the World Bank didn't call the police!"

Bridger nodded appreciatively. "Wow, that's good to hear. Anything else?"

Wolfman shook his head. "I don't think so, and I really have to go now. I have a date in a few minutes, and I don't want to be late."

The older man smiled. "Have fun, and thanks again for telling me everything."

The red-haired boy nodded. "That goes wihout saying, Captain, anytime! Bye!" And with that, he ended the call.

For some time, Bridger sat looking at the black screen. Then, he put the yellow piece of paper back into Lucas' book. After that, Nathan took a second sheet of paper and wrote a few lines on it. Then he took the paper and the book, "The Gospel According To Larry," stood up, and walked out of his cabin.

* * *

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	7. Chapter 7

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 7

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to Swasti, dolphinology, KatKnits00, wolenczak2004 for their reviews.

Swasti: Thanks! It is interesting to read your thoughts to my story.

dolphinology: Thanks. Before I wrote the original german story I watched „Photon Bullet" again. But it was kind of difficult to translate it. (By the way the episode „Photon Bullet" is called „Kampf gegen die Welt" „Fight against the World" in germany)

KatKnits00: Thanks for your review. I normally think that Lucas wouldn't tell if he has hacked something, but I thought that the World Bank is such a big and importend think that he tells the people it so that they can make it safer.

wolenczak2004: Thanks for your review!

* * *

Captain Bridger knocked softly at the door of Lucas' cabin. He didn't want to wake the boy up if he was sleeping. After receiving no response, he stepped into the cabin. His glance fell on the blond teenager, who was sleeping quietly. He walked to Lucas' desk as silently as possible and put the book down. Then, he folded the paper and put it on the book so that it would catch the teenager's eye when he woke up.

For a moment, he stood by Lucas' bed. Then, he leaned forward and pulled the covers up so that the teen wouldn't get cold. "Sleep well, kiddo. I'm so sorry about everything..." Then, he turned around and left the cabin.

Lucas listened for a moment, and when he couldn't hear the captain's footsteps any longer, he opened his eyes and sat up in his bed. Slowly, a few tears ran down his cheeks. The whole situation was fraying his nerves to no end.

He had just gone to bed and tried to sleep when he'd heard the knocking at his door, so he had pretended to be sleeping. At the sound of the steps, he could tell right away that it was Bridger. His heart was racing, and when the captain had covered him with the blanket and spoken to him, he had nearly lost it.

The young man's glance fell on his desk. He stood up and took the paper in his hands. Sitting under the paper, he recognized the book that he had left behind in the lab... He unfolded the paper and saw the captain's handwriting.

_Lucas,_

_I know that I have made a huge mistake, and I want to talk with you about it._

_I really should have let you explain what happened with the World Bank._

_I'm so sorry about everything! I didn't seriously mean the comment about your parents, and I hope you know that I would never send you away!_

_Please give me the chance to talk with you._

_Bridger_

_P.S. I have read your book and would like to talk with you about it._

It felt to Lucas like a weight was falling from his shoulders; Bridger wouldn't send him away from the seaQuest. But the teenager wasn't really anxious to speak with the older man. He had said so many things that he didn't mean, and he really was ashamed. Would he ever be able to re-build his relationship with the captain again?

The teenager's eyes moved around his cabin. Bridger had often called it untidy, but Lucas saw it a bit differently; his cabin looked lived in. And besides, if he cleaned it up he wouldn't be able to find anything - he needed his chaos. The only things that were really kept well were his much-loved computer equipment, his music discs, and his beloved books.

The boy's glance was drawn to his computer. A flashing symbol told him that he had a new message. The young man sat down in front of his computer and started to go through his e-mails. When he saw that he had a new one from Wolfman, he clicked on it.

_Hi Frankenstein, _

_Talked to your captain. I don't know what your argument was about, but the man is really beating himself up over it. Your captain is a real cool guy. I know that whatever he said, he's really sorry about it..._

_Talk to him!_

_I'll send you a longer e-mail in a few days. I have just met this hot girl, and I really have to tell you about her._

_See you later..._

_Owwooooooooooooo!_

_Wolfmann_

Lucas' guilt over the argument was getting more and more serious. Why hadn't he spoken with the captain rationally about everything? What kind of genius was he if he couldn't even handle himself in a conversation? And how did Wolfman suddenly know about all of this? Bridger had obviously told him.

The teenager shook his head. His thought's wouldn't go forwards. Probaply it would be best if he just went and talked with the older man first thing tomorrow. Lucas shut his computer down and went to bed, but his thoughts kept him awake for a long time.

* * *

In the middle of he night, Bridger was awakened by a loud knocking at his door. Still half asleep, he climbed out of bed. "Yes, come in!"

His nephew, Oliver, ran breathlessly into the cabin. "Uncle Nathan, you have to come with me."

Bridger put on his dark blue bathrobe. "Calm down, what's happend?"

The dark-haired teenager took a deep breath. "You have to come with me. It's Lucas!"

Captain Bridger felt his heart drop into his stomach. "What's wrong with Lucas?"

Oliver shook his head. "Not now. You have to come with me right away." The boy turned around and started to run, and Bridger followed at his heels.

Nathan had never seen his nephew like this; his worry over Lucas became unbearable. "Oliver this is the wrong direction, Lucas' cabin is the other way!"

Still running, the teenager shook his head. "No, he isn't in his cabin, he's on the bridge."

Thousands of thoughts were running through Bridger's head as he followed his nephew. What had happened to his youngest crew member, and why was he on the bridge at that hour? And how did Oliver know about it?

* * *

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	8. Chapter 8

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 8

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to wolenczak2004, Sammi, KatKnits00, dolphinology, sweet me, Swasti, Helen88126, Teresa and sunnybunny for their reviews. You made me really happy with this many reviews.

wolenczak2004: Thanks! You are so right!

Sammi: Thanks for your kind words.

KatKnits00: Thanks! You are kind of right with your review.

dolphinology: Thanks! Wow, I kind of feel honoured that I made you almost cry.

sweet me: Thanks! You will read what will happen.

Swasti: Thanks! Yeah, trouble is written all over this. You have a good reason to be worried.

Helen88126: Thanks! Just scroll down to the text and you will read what Oliver has done.

Teresa: Thanks! Yes, I also think that Oliver is a good name for the teenager. When I named him I did it without any spezial reason, but a few minutes later I realised that this was also Captain Hudsons first name. (Have I mentend that I hated this character?)

sunnybunny: Danke! Thanks fort the review to my german version of this story, I was kind of surprised to find a new one there. Ist es nicht praktisch wenn man gleich alles lesen kann und nicht auf die Übersetzung warten muss? Übrigens, im deutschsprachigen Sektor gibt es noch einiges mehr. (Mit dem Zaunpfall winkt und Werbung macht.)

* * *

Finally, they reached the bridge, but what Nathan saw there threw him for a loop. There was no sign of Lucas, but there were three armed men standing on the bridge. Their guns were aimed at Lt. O'Neill, Lt. Cdr. Hitchcock, and Chief Crocker. Tim O'Neill had a bruise on his face, and the glasses that he normally wore were nowhere to been seen.

All three crew members, like Bridger, were standing there in only their pajamas or other nightclothes. They had all been pulled out of their sleep.

"What's going on here?" asked the captain in an anxious tone of voice.

A man stepped up next to him. "We are the ones asking the questions here. Let me introdruce myself - my name is Major. Bert Major, and I'm the leader of this nice group here." Major made a sarcastic bow.

"What do you want with my crew?" Bridger looked the man in his cold, green eyes.

"Oh, your crew is fine. Or rather I should say, is fine for now. If you wish it to stay that way, you better do what I ask you to do. Your doctor and four of the other scientists have been arrested and put in the brig. The other ones were able escape, but it is only a matter of time before we catch them too."

Nathan let out a small, inward breath of relief. This meant that Ford, Krieg, Ortiz, Lucas, and one of the scientists were still free. Hopefully, they wouldn't get caught and could help them. Only now did Bridger think of his nephew and looked questioningly at Oliver.

Oliver Stevens was looking unashamedly at his uncle. "Don't look at me that way! Heven't you realized what's happening here? I'm working with them. Did you really believe that I was just visiting you because I wanted to see my old uncle again?" Oliver laughed scornfully. "Of course not! But this was the perfect way to get your submarine. Letting the others on board was a piece of cake!" The teenager smiled wickedly at Nathan.

Captain Bridger looked shocked and unbelievably disappointed with his nephew. "Why Oliver? Why are you doing this? You've always been..."

The dark-haired teenager didn't let him finish his sentence. "Yes, I was always mom's and dad's little darling. But that stops right now! I'm fed up with playing somebody that I'm not. I have finally found real friends in New York who let me be who I really am! Now I can be who I really am."

Nathan shook his head. "This isn't you and these aren't your real friends. They just used you to get the seaQuest!"

Oliver got angry. " Shut up! You don't now who I really am, and you've never really seen me! Since Robert died, you just see an image of him in me. You don't know anything about my friends, so you can't judge them. Maybe they're just using me, but that doesn't matter to me. I feel better around them!"

The captain felt a stab in his heart. Oliver had played a game with him and made Lucas look bad. Why hadn't he believed the genius when he had said that he was innocent with what happened at the Moon Pool. "Lucas was telling the truth about the Moon Pool!"

Oliver laughed. "Of course he was. But it's been so much fun driving a wedge between you. It's been a long time since I had so much fun!"

Bridger looked sadly at his nephew. "Why?"

The dark-haired teenager gave another scornful laugh. "Why? What a wonderful question. This little basterd has everything anyone can wish for. He's intelligent, he has rich parents who probably give him everything he wants, his future is seccure because of his inventions, and now he has you! And besides that, you all have been completely distracted! Nobody noticed that I brought weapons on board, and nobody noticed when I let the others on board tonight. But the main thing is, it was fun! It was so nice to see you and little Lucas suffer!"

Before Bridger could say anything, Bert Major interrupted. "That's enough for now. Let's get straight to the point. We want the seaQuest. Your Lt.," he gestured to Tim O'Neill, "was unfortunately smart enough to shut down the whole computer system. I want you to bring it up again so that we can control the boat."

Nathan shook his head. "Who are you exactly, and what do you want with the seaQuest?"

"That's none of your business. Start the system!"

The captain shook his head again. "I can't. If the system is shut down in an emergency like Lt. O'Neill has done, it can only be activated after 6 hours have passed."

Bert Major smiled. "Do you really think I didn't know that? But there is also another possibility. You can activate it using a special password. So, give me the password!"

Bridger looked him in he face. "No!"

Anger was rising in Major. He pointed his weapon directly at Bridger. "Give me the password or you or another member of your crew will die. It lies in your hands."

But again, the captain only shook his head. "You know that you are threatening my crew to gain control of the seaQuest. This a terroristic act, and the UEO forbids negotiations with terrorists."

Suddenly, a smile flashed over Oliver's face. He turned to the leader. "Let them bring in young Wolenczak. I'm sure he'll talk then!"

Nathan looked at his nephew, shocked. He didn't recognize Oliver anymore. How could the young man be so cruel? He knew what Lucas meant to him. Bridger had no idea what to do. He couldn't negotiate with the terrorists, but on the other hand, he couldn't put the submarine over the young man's life. But again, thousands of other people could also be killed if the seaQuest fell into the wrong hands.

Bert Major looked proudly at Oliver Stevens. "That's a brilliant idea." He gripped his walkie-talkie. "Daniel, bring the boy to the bridge, and hurry!"

* * *

A few minutes later, the blond teenager was led by two armed and muscular men onto the bridge. A large bruise was starting to form on the right side of his face below his eye. It was obvious that Lucas hadn't gone with the men voluntarily. The boy was wearing his typical night clothes, boxer shorts and a t-shirt.

Captain Bridger had prayed until now that his youngest crew member had been able to escape, but now his hopes were shattered. One look at Lucas told him that the boy had no idea what was going on here.

Bert Major walked towards the blond teen and stopped directly in front of him. "So, you are the son of the famous Dr. Wolenczak. It's an honor to met you, Lucas!"

The computer genius looked at him with contempt. "Unfortunately, I can't return the compliment. See, I hate it when somebody drags me out of my bed and threatens me with a weapon. And what is this about, anyway?"

Nathan closed his eyes for a moment. He could only pray that Lucas' sometimes fresh mouth wouldn't get the boy into any more trouble. Bridger couldn't bear if anything happened to the teen!

But to Bridger's relief, Major smiled. "I can see that nothing's happened to your mouth. But nevertheless, it's none of your busines what is going on here." He turned away from Lucas and stepped over to Captain Bridger. "So, will you now give me the password so that we can finally activate the computer system?"

"I have already told you that I can't and won't give you the password!"

Major gave Oliver Stevens a sign and nodded to him. Oliver, who meanwhile had retrieved a weapon, aimed his gun directly at Lucas' head. "Either you give me the damned password, Captain, or the boy is dead!"

Nathan Bridger looked first at Bert Major, then at his nephew, and then at the rest of the crew. O'Neill's, Crocker's, and Hitchcock's looks all indicated the same thing, that he should tell the terrorists the password. None of them could allow the teenager to die because of this, and Major had sounded like he reallly meant what he had said.

At last, the captain's eyes met the young genius's. But in contrast to the others, the boy shook his head. Bridger could see in the blue eyes that Lucas was afraid, but the teen still shook his head. The young man didn't want Bridger to give the password away. Lucas understood what was going on on the bridge and knew what the password meant. The moment he had been led onto the bridge, he had noticed that the computer screens were all black. The youngest crew member knew that the terrorists would be able to control the boat if they found out the password, but he couldn't let that happen. Who knew how mutch damage they would cause with the seaQuest.

Bridger exchanged a last look with Lucas, then he looked away and closed his eyes. "I can't give you the password."

Major gave a short cry of annoyance. "Then it's your fault that the boy dies now. Only your fault, Captain Bridger." Bert gave Oliver a sign.

Oliver Stevens turned off the safety on the gun, and his finger went to the trigger.

* * *

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	9. Chapter 9

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 9

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to Nerene, KatKnits00, dolphinology, Swasti, kokomocalifornia, wolenczak2004 and Teresa for their reviews. And thanks for not hating me because of the last cliffhanger.

Nerene: Thanks for your kind words. What can I say besides I love to wrirte cliffhangers, but I hate to reas them by others because I want to know what happens.

KatKnits00: Thanks! Interesting thoughts that you have.

dolphinology: Thanks! Yeah, a cliffhanger ;-). I hope your heart has slowed down.

Swasti:Thanks! I can't tell you if I Lucas will be killed or not. What kind of writer would I be if I do that? Yeah, the comment that Oliver made about his friends now make sence. Here is more:

kokomocalifornia: Thanks! I hope this is soon enough.

Wolenczak2004: Thanks for your kind words

Teresa: Thanks for your Review. I kind of feeled honoured that you have put so many thoughts in my storie.

* * *

Bridger exchanged a last look with Lucas, then he looked away and closed his eyes. "I can't give you the password."

Major gave a short cry of annoyance. "Then it's your fault that the boy dies now. Only your fault, Captain Bridger." Bert gave Oliver a sign.

Oliver Stevens turned off the safety on the gun, and his finger went to the trigger.

A moment before the dark-haired teenager could shoot, Major shouted. "Stop, Oliver! I've just had an even better idea. If it doesn't work, we can always shoot him later." Each member of the seaQuest crew let out a breath of relief.

Major looked questioningly at Oliver, even though he already knew the answer to his question. "The boy is supposed to be a computer genius, right?"

Bridger's nephew nodded. "Yes."

"Then he should be able to tell us what the password is. That is, if the lives of the others mean anything to him."

Lucas turned pale. Of course he knew the password, but under no condition could he tell it to them. Major grabbed the teenager's elbow and pushed him into a chair in front of the closest computer terminal. "So, give us the password."

The young genius shook his head. "I don't know what the password is!"

The leader looked darkly at Lucas. "Don't fool around with me. I'm know that you know it!"

Lucas shook his head again. "Do you really believe that someone would trust a 14-year old with that kind of password?"

Bridger and the three others from the seaQuest looked up in surprise. Had their youngest crew member just said that he was 14? The boy was 16, wasn't he?

Major grabbed Lucas' shirt threateningly. "Don't play games with me. If you don't know it, then crack it. Anyone who is good enough to hack into the World Bank is can also crack a stupid password!" Bert let go of the teen.

O'Neill, Hitchcock, and Crocker were shocked. Lucas had hacked into the World Bank? It seemed that their young friend was full of surprises.

The young man took a deep breath. "But I'm not planning to crack this _'stupid password'_!"

Bert Major aimed his gun at the teen. "Either you crack the damned thing or you are sharkbait."

Lucas shook his head and looked Major straight in the eyes. "No!"

Oliver stepped directly in front of his uncle and put his weapon to Bridger's head. "Crack the password, or I swear to you I'll kill him!"

The blond teenager felt ice-cold shivers running down his back. It was one thing when it was his own life on the line, but now it was about the life of someone else, about Captain Bridger's. He couldn't let Oliver kill the older man. It would be his fault if that happend, and Lucas knew that he wouldn't be able to live with the guilt. But on the other hand, he wasn't allowed to tell the password. The seaQuest was a deadly weapon, and who knew what the terrorists would do with the submarine.

What should he do? Captain Bridger had always been like a father to him, more than his real dad had ever been. To Lawrence, he had only ever been a burden or the genius that he could show off to his colleagues or other important people. But Bridger saw him for the person he really was. The captain had given him the feeling that he was liked and that he was important. And he hadn't even been able to tell the older man how sorry he was about the argument. What on earth should he do?

Lucas' eyes locked with the captain's. Bridger shook his head. He wanted the boy keep quiet about the password.

Major looked at the teen. "What is your desicion?"

The computer genius closed his eyes. "I'll try to crack the password."

"Lucas no, you can't..." shouted Nathan, but before he could finish the sentence, Oliver hit him on the head with his weapon.

"Shut up, or I'll rethink this whole thing and kill Lucas!"

Bridger closed his mouth. Blood was running down his forehead from where the gun had caught him. One last time, the youngest crew member of the seaQuest looked at Bridger, then he turned to the keyboard and started to type. After a short time, the screen in front of him came to life.

Major looked over Lucas' shoulder. "How long will everything take? Can't you make it go faster?"

The teenager's blue eyes looked up from the computer screen. "I'm not sure how long this will take. Can you please move back a little bit? You're really making me nervous, and that might make me slower. I'm also afraid that I could make a mistake."

Bert gave Lucas a dark look but stepped back anyway and turned away from the boy. The teenager let out a quiet sigh of relief.

Two minutes later, all the computer screens on the bridge came to life again. But exactly 3 seconds later, they went blank again. Everyone looked at Lucas. Major stormed over to the teenager, grabbed him by the t-shirt, and pulled him from the chair. "What have you done?"

Lucas' voice sounded calm. "I changed the password. Now I'm the only one who knows it and can tell it to you. But I did something else too. I added a second safety feature. The password is now based on voice-recognition. I have put the voice-patterns of every seaQuest crew member that is currently on board, except mine, into the computer. Even if you had the password, everyone else would need to confirm it with their voices. If one voice is missing, the whole computer system will shut down completely, and there will be no chance of activating it again. You have to understand me, Mr. Major, I'm just trying to save all of our lives!"

Captain Bridger, Lt. Cdr. Hitchcock, Chief Crocker, and Lt. O'Neill felt incredible pride at how the teenager was handling the situation. Lucas had had an outstanding idea, and he probably _was _saving all of their lives. But they were also afraid. How would the terrorists react now? Lucas may have saved them, but he had most certainly put himself into more danger.

Major still hadn't let go of the young man, and he now grabbed his t-shirt even harder and smashed the boy against the wall. Lucas' head hit the wall full force. The teenager had to struggle to stay conscious; everything was spinning around him, and he saw light spots whirling in front of his eyes.

But that wasn't enough for Major, and he started to let his anger out on the helpless boy. He threw a few powerful punches at the teenager. Suddenly, Lucas' legs gave out under him; he just couldn't stand any longer. The screams from the others trying to get Bert to stop sounded to Lucas like they were coming from far away. The teenager felt it as Major started to kick him. The pain became unbearable, but he didn't have the strength to defend himself. It didn't take long before everything faded to black.

* * *

To Be Continued …

Oh, I fell so evil…

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	10. Chapter 10

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 10

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to wolenczak2004,kokomocalifornia, sweet me, Kat Knits00, Nerene, dolphinology ,Swasti and Lynnp for their reviews.

wolenczak2004: Thanks! Here is the bird ;-)

kokomocalifornia: Thanks! Sorry because of your fingernails. I'm also afraid that the cliffhanger from this chapter is even worser than the last…

sweet me: Thanks! Yeah, poor Lucas.

KatKnits00: Thanks for the review!

Nerene: Thanks for your kind words! The boy is really a genius if he has finished Stanford with 16 or in my story even with 14. So there should be some quick thinking from time to time.

dolphinology: Thanks for your kind words!

Swasti: Thanks, your kind words make me turn red. You will get more of my evil side at the end of this chapter.

Lynnp: Tanks for your review. Ha, I know that I can be evil! ;-) Here is the next one:

* * *

"Kristin! Please hurry, his eyelids are starting to flicker!" It sounded to Lucas like the captain's voice was coming from a far distance.

Dr. Westphalen immediately came to the captain's side and knelt down next to the teenager, who was lying on the only mattress in the cell. Bridger's bathrobe was used as a cover for the injured boy. "Yes, that's good Lucas, open your eyes."

A few moments later, Lucas had managed to pry his eyes open. "What happened?"

Nathan brushed a strand of Lucas's hair out of his face. "Major attacked you, and you lost consciousness."

The boy shook his head slowly and carefully. "I don't mean that, I mean what are we doing here?" His voice sounded quiet and sleepy.

Bridger nodded. "After you lost consciousness, they put us in the cell with Dr. Westphalen, Dr. Williams, Dr. Line, Dr. Miller and Dr. Smithen. Ford, Krieg, Ortiz and Dr. Peterson are still free. We can only hope that they will be able to free us also. Oh, and by the way, the password and the voice-recognition programs were brilliant!"

Lucas smiled slightly. "Thanks... It was the only thing I could think of, given the circumstances." The teenager tried to move and cried out in pain."

Dr. Westphalen moved closer to the teenager. "Where does it hurt?"

The young man thought about the answer to that question. "To tell you the truth, nearly everywhere. But it's okay, only my head feels like exploding."

The red-haired doctor nodded. "That's to be expected. You have several nasty bruises, and I would imagine that you have a consussion as well. I'm terribly sorry, but I have nothing here to help the pain."

The teenager nodded. "No problem, Dr. Westphalen, I'll survive without it." Lucas tried to sit up. He didn't want to lie down any longer, and it was a weird feeling having everyone else looking down at him.

Bridger gave him a helping hand. When Lucas made it to a sitting position, the captain wrapped his bathrobe around the boy once more.

"Thanks." Lucas gave Bridger a brief smile. Then he thought back to their argument. "Captain, I'm really sorry about our argument. I didn't really mean what I said. I was just so angry! Can you please forgive me?" The teen looked at the captain with his big blue eyes.

Nathan smiled. Lucas' apology went straight to his heart. Then he smiled again; the teenager was always so serious with him. Bridger was still waiting for the day when the boy would just call him _Nathan_. Sometimes, it didn't sound right to him when Lucas called him _Captain_. They knew each other so well and were such good friends that it sometimes just seemed wrong to him. But, he was pretty sure that Lucas would never have the courage to call him anything but Captain. The boy wasn't raised that way. The teenager had been taught that adults had higher status and that you were only allowed to use their first names if they had told you or asked you to use them. He really should tell the boy to use his first name in the future.

"I think we both have to apologize. I also said a few things that I shouldn't have said. I would never send you back to your parents!" Captain Bridger gave the teenager a gentle hug so as not to hurt him anymore. Then, he looked his youngest crew member in the eye. "There's something I need to know."

The blond teen looked curiously at him. "Yeah?"

"Back on the bridge, you said that you're 14, but we always thought that you were 16. How old are you really?" Lucas looked down at the ground. "Kiddo, please look at me. How old are you?"

It was completely silent in the cell; everyone was anxious to hear what Lucas had to say.

The teenager raised his eyes to meet Bridger's. "What I said on the bridge was true – I am 14. I just wasn't thinking when I said it. My parents wanted me to say that I'm 16. The admiral wouldn't have agreed to let me come on board the seaQuest if he knew how old I really was. So I hacked into the Social Security records and changed the year on my birth certificate to two years earlier. Please don't send me away because of that. If we get out of this alive, that is."

Bridger shook his head. "Don't worry, I won't send you away, I already told you that. I know that the seaQuest is your home. And, I promise you that we will all survive this. We can trust to Ford and the others!"

At that moment, the door opened and Bert Major, Oliver, and two other men came into the cell. Major turned to Lucas. "Either you tell us the password now, or your last hour has just began."

The blond teenager shook his head with conviction. "No. And besides, you can't kill me because if you do, you'll never get the password."

Major's eyes narrowed. "We don't have much time left, and if we don't get it now, then it won't matter to us anymore. We need the password now!"

The computer genius shook his head again. "Forget it - I will never tell you the password!"

Major gave Oliver a little sign that went unnoticed by the others. Oliver Stevens drew his gun, aimed it at Lucas, and pulled the trigger.

* * *

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	11. Chapter 11

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 11

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to wolenczak2004, Lynnp, dolphinology, KatKnits00, TeacherTam, Swasti, Nerene, kokomocalifornia and sweet me for their reviews.

wolenczak 2004: Thanks! Yeah, you just have to wait.

Lynnp: Thanks! Read and you will see what will happen next.

dolphinology: Thanks, being so young makes him more vulnerable.

KatKnits00: Thanks! Isn't it kind of horrible to hear that someone is living away from his parents with only 14? But maybe with parents like the Wolenczaks this isn't such a bad thing…

TeacherTam. Thanks!

Swasti: There was a line in the last chapter that should explain a little bit why Oliver should shoot Lucas. I write it down here again_: "We don't have much time left, and if we don't get it now, then it won't matter to us anymore. We need the password now!"_ And as we know, Lucas didn't give the password away, so Major got angry or frustrated and we know what happend next…

Nerene: Thanks! What can I say besides that I love to write cliffhangers? It's good that you still remember that Ford, Krieg, Ortiz and a few others are still free.

kokomocalifornia: Thanks! You sum it up really good, it goes from bad to worse. Here's the update for your sanity…

sweet me: Thanks! You will read what will happen to Lucas.

* * *

At nearly the same moment, all hell broke loose. Gunshots could be heard outside in the corridor, as well as the voice of Commander Ford shouting orders.

But Captain Bridger heard nothing. His full attention was focused on Lucas. The bullet's momentum had thrown the boy back. There was an increasing amount of blood pooling around him.

Nathan was kneeling next to him, trying to put enough pressure on the wound in Lucas' stomach to make the bleeding slow or even stop.

Lucas was still conscious, but he grew paler with every passing second. The strange thing was that he didn't feel any pain; he was just really cold, and he could feel the wetness of the blood. He told himself that he must be in shock and that was why he couldn't feel the pain. But he also felt like it was becoming harder and harder to stay awake. He needed to tell Bridger the password before he slipped into unconsciousness, or worse, before he died. "Capatain..." his voice was very weak.

Bridger leaned down close to Lucas' face. "Shhh, Lucas, everything will be okay. You have to save your strength. Don't try to talk..."

"No... there's something I need to tell you..."

The captain could hear it in his voice that the boy was very serious and that it was important to him. He leaned even closer. The boy's voice was growing softer with each word. Bridger's worry increased as the others fought the terrorists.

Dr. Westphalen rushed to Lucas' side. One look told her that the teenager was in big trouble. The woman knelt down across from Bridger and nodded to the captain as a sign that she would keep the pressure on the wound for him.

Nathan immediately lay Lucas' head in his lap so that it would be more comfortable for the young man. He stroked a strands of hair out of the teenager's face and leaned as close to him as possible. "What is it Lucas, what do you need to tell me?"

Lucas tried to concentrate on what he wanted to say. "The password..." He made a short brake to breath. "...it is Thegospelacco..." The teenager wasn't able to tell the captain the rest of the password as he finally lost his fight to stay awake and slipped into unconsciousness.

Kristin undertstood what the boy had just said, even though it was only a whisper. She looked desperately at the captain. "Nathan, we need the whole password to operate on him. The electronic instruments in Medbay are connected with the computer system, and that means I can only operate on him when the computer system is working! We need the password!"

Nathan nodded. "I know the rest of the password." Lucas had chosen a password that the captain knew. It was the book that the boy had left on the floor of the lab that Bridger had also read.

Commander Ford came over to them quickly. "We were able to overpower the terrorists. A few of our crew members are arresting them now." Only then did he realize that both adults were bent over Lucas. "Oh my god!"

The captain moved carefully from Lucas' head to his side. Gently but quickly, he lifted the boy in his arms. Jonathan Ford helped him to stand up without losing his balance. Dr. Westphalen was still putting pressure on the wound in the teenager's stomach and gave the commander orders. "Have Krieg and Dr. Miller come to Medbay - they both have medical training, and they need to assist me with the operation. And ask the others if any of them have no problems with blood and because I need a fourth person. And the computer has to be activated again. Call us when you're ready - the captain will give you the password through the PAL. I just hope the voice-recognition will work through the PAL."

Ford immediately ran to do everything the red-haired woman had just commanded. Normally, he wouldn't take orders from a civilian, but this was something of an emergency.

Nathan looked at Kristin as they rushed to Medbay. "I can assist you, I have no problem seeing blood."

The doctor shook her head. "No, you are too close to Lucas."

"That goes for everyone on this damn boat!"

Westphalen shook her head again. "No, you are like a part of his family. I said no, and thats's that!"

Finally, they reached Medbay, and Bridger lay the blond teenager on a bed. Only a second, later his PAL began to pipe up. "Yes?"

The voice of Commander Ford could be heard on the other end. "We're ready, you can give us the password."

Captain Bridger told them that the book title was the password. After he did that, he repeated every single letter. "Thegospelaccordingtolarry. T-H-E-G-O-S-P-E-L-A-C-C-O-R-D-I-N-G-T-O-L-A-R-R-Y."

"Okay, Captain, we got it," said Lt. O'Neill and typed every letter into the computer. When he was ready, he hit Enter, and all the screens on the submarine came to life again. Tim looked questioningly at Ford and Crocker, who were standing next to him. "Didn't Lucas say something about a voice-recognition program?"

The chief nodded. "Yes, he did, but it seems that he was just bluffing. Remind me to never play poker with that boy!"

* * *

Four hours later, Lucas was out of surgery. Dr. Westphalen, Lt. Krieg, Dr. Miller, and Dr. Peterson had performed the operation.

Nathan had only left Medbay once, and that had been to change out of the pajamas that were soaked with the teenager's blood and into real clothes.

Captain Bridger was sitting at Lucas' bedside, holding the boy's left hand. The other arm had an IV in it to replace some of the blood he had lost. Meanwhile, Dr. Westpahelen had also taken care of Bridger's and O'Neill's head wounds.

Nathan had decided that Commander Ford and Chief Crocker should interrogate the terrorists while Hitchcock, O'Neill, and Ortiz piloted the seaQuest to UEO headquarters alone. He just wanted to be at Lucas' side - that was his main priority now. And besides that, he didn't think he could ever look Oliver in the eye again. His nephew had been the one to shoot Lucas. If the blond teenager died, then it would be by Oliver's hand.

Dr. Westphalen had it made clear to Bridger that their youngest crew member could still die, even though the operation had been successful. Lucas was still in critical condition.

Nathan stroked the boy's hair out of his face. "Don't be a quitter, kiddo! You have to hold on! You _must_ hold on! Please!" Bridger swallowed the lump forming in his throat. He was still holding Lucas' hand, and it was like he could hold onto the teenager by doing so.

But the older man also hoped the boy could feel that there was somebody there for him, someone that would never leave him. "I've never told you this, Lucas, but you mean so much to me. I don't know how I can desribe it... You're like a son to me! And I wish you really were! I can't tell you how sorry I am about our argument and that I didn't believe you about the Moon Pool. I will never forgive myself! Kiddo you must fight - please don't leave me alone. I need you. I can't go through something like this again; I won't survive. I don't want to lose you. None of us do! The whole boat is sick with worry about you. You mean so much to us, and I don't think you even know it. You've changed the whole tone on the seaQuest. I know what I'm talking about because I have been on many submarines during my career. But none of them felt like a family. Somehow, you were able to change every one of us and bring us together. I think you know that Lt. Krieg thinks of you as his little brother, but the others do too. I feel like you've turned me into the father of the whole crew here. We all try to give you a real home on the seaQuest. Don't leave us alone, Lucas, please don't do that to us!"

Two hour later, Bridger was still sitting at Lucas' bedside, but he had fallen asleep in his chair. Suddenly, he was awakened by a loud squealing. Immediately, Nathan's glance went to the different monitors and machines that the teen was hooked up to. It didn't take him more than a second to see why one of them was giving off the sound. The captain had the feeling that somehow, the ground he was standing on had fallen away from under his feet. Lucas' heart had stopped beating!

* * *

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	12. Chapter 12

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 12

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to Swasti, wolenczak2004, KatKnits00, dolphinology, TeacherTam, Nerene and kokomocalifornia for their reviews. Thank you so much for all your wonderful reviews, they make me turn red in the face and they make my days.

Swasti: Thank for your kind words. It's really nice of you to call me the king of cliffies. But just for the record, i would prefor to be called queen of cliffies. ;-) Here is more:

wolenczak2004: Thanks! And yes, I'm sure that I'm not the child of Devil.

KatKnits00: Thanks! I think I will have something for your love/hate relationship with cliffhangers in the end of this chapter. But it's not so cliffi like the chapters before.

dolphinology: Thanks for your review. Great that you liked it besides the one thing.

TeacherTam: Thanks! I also love the password

Nerene: Thanks for your kind words! You can breath again, I hope the wait wasn't to long.

kokomocalifornia: Thanks for your kind words. I know that it is mean to write cliffhangers, but I just love it so much. But I really hate it when other do this. ;-)

* * *

Two hour later, Bridger was still sitting at Lucas' bedside, but he had fallen asleep in his chair. Suddenly, he was awakened by a loud squealing. Immediately, Nathan's glance went to the different monitors and machines that the teen was hooked up to. It didn't take him more than a second to see why one of them was giving off the sound. The captain had the feeling that somehow, the ground he was standing on had fallen away from under his feet. Lucas' heart had stopped beating!

Dr. Westphalen, Dr. Miller, Dr. Peterson, and Lt. Krieg rushed into the room. Even those that weren't medical doctors like Kristin knew what to do - besides Peterson, they'd all had some degree of medical training.

Dr. Westphalen was the first to reach Lucas' bed, and grabbed the machine to restart the teenager's heart. "Nathan, go away, you're in our way!" The captain stepped back immediately and started to pray. The boy couldn't die. All of Bridger's concentration was focused on the teen; he didn't hear any of the orders that Kristin was giving to the others.

* * *

Lucas felt strange. He didn't feel any pain, just lightness and freedom.

In front of him, he could see a sparkling white light. Slowly, the teenager moved towards it. The light was warm and gave him a feeling of safety and comfort. Suddenly, Lucas stopped walking - he could see the silhouettes of his grandparents in the light. But they had died years ago! They had both died within months of each other when the computer genius was just 7 years old. Lucas could clearly remember times when he had visited his grandparents. They had always spoiled him. His grandpa had made him a spectacular treehouse, and his grandma had cooked and baked all his favorite things. His best childhood memories were connected with his grandparents.

The closer the young man got to them, the more clear their images became. The teen started to run and fell into their arms. Both were smiling at their grandson. But then, their faces became sad.

Lucas was confused. "What is it? Aren't you happy to see me again?"

His grandfather shook his head. "No, this is too early for you."

The teenager looked uncomprehendingly at the two. "Too early for what?"

"Too early for death!" anwered his nana.

"I'm dead?" The young genius was stunned. After a moment's thought, he realized that what they said made sense. "That's why I feel so diffrent!"

His grandpa nodded. "Yes, but it's too early for you - you have to go back. There is so much life ahead of you. We want to see what you will do in the future because we know you will do so much!"

Lucas looked at his grandfather, still confused. "How do you know that? I won't do anything, I'm dead!"

His grandmother smiled at that. "Oh, we know quite a lot. At the moment, you are just dead because you have given up. But, it is not too late. You still have the chance to fight!"

The teenager shook his head. "No, I want to stay here. I want to stay with you. You've been the only people that ever truly loved me. I don't mean anything to my parents, I want to stay with you two!"

Both grandparents shook their heads. "You can't give up because of Lawrence and Cynthia. There are so many other people you are important to. Just think of the seaQuest. You have so many friends on the seaQuest, and you mean something special to every one of them. Do you want them to mourn you? Would you do that to them? Would you do that to Captain Bridger?"

Lucas bit down on his lip as tears started running down his cheeks. He would never see the others again, and he would never swim with Darwin again. There would be no poker with Miguel and Tim; he would never work with Dr. Westphalen again. The red-haired woman would never again be able to tell him that he needed to eat and sleep more. He would never be able to joke around with Ben again, and the lieutenant would never be able to get him into trouble. Crocker would now have to try to understand the computer alone, even write his own security programs. Commander Ford would be never able to tell him again that he shouldn't run in the corridors of the seaQuest. Lucas and Hitchcock had just started to plan a new Stinger design, and now they wouldn't be able to complete it. And he would never be able to argue with her whether it was a Stinger or a Gazelle.

And he wouldn't be able to play online games with Wolfman anymore. Work at the computer, listen to music, read books, do things with the others... There were also the little things that sometimes got on his nerves, but he mostly he would miss everything.

And then, there was the captain. He had already lost his son and his wife. But did he really mean that much to him? Could he do that to the captain? Would the captain mourn his death?

But there were also so many others think about. His parents, who he wasn't getting along with, who hadn't even managed to come to his high school or college graduations. But now he didn't need to argue with them anymore. Now he didn't need to hope anymore that his relationship with them would get better, and he wouldn't get disappointed because it didn't.

Nodody would ever look at him funny again. How many times had it happened where he had been treated unfairly and meanly because of his age. His time at school had never been good - he had always been much younger than the others and therefore hadn't been able to make friends. The others had excluded him from group projects because of his age and intelligence. Group projects had always been pure horror for him. But there had also been teachers who hadn't been very friendly to him. They didn't like the fact that such a small child knew more than they did. He had felt their envy.

Most of the time, the kids or teenagers around his own age also didn't want to have anything to do with him. They were scared of him when they found out how smart he really was. He could count the few friends he had, besides the ones from the seaQuest, on one hand.

The teenager looked pleadingly at his grandparents. "I want to stay here, I want to be with you! There's nothing to go back to."

His grandmother lowered her head. "Alright, Lucas, but don't be scared if we suddenly disappear. We want to give you one last thing to think about. After that, you can decide if you want to fight for your life or not. We love you!"

Before Lucas had the chance to say anything, his grandparents disappeared. The white light began to fade. He was now in Medbay. He saw his body lying on a bed - Dr. Westphalen, Ben, Dr. Miller and Dr. Peterson were bent over him, trying to save his life.

Then he saw the captain. Bridger was standing by the wall, looking at Lucas' body. Tears were running down his face.

The teenager tried to speak to him. "Captain?" There was no reaction from the older man. "Captain? I'm feeling ok now, you don't need to be sad. Captain?" Again no reaction. Finally, the young man realized that the other couldn't see or hear him. For the others, there was only his body, lying on a bed, which they were fighting to bring life back to.

Suddenly, the unthinkable happened. The boy could hear Captain Bridger's thoughts in his head.

_Lucas, please, don't leave me alone. I need you. You are like my own son. And I've said before but I'll say it again - I really wish that you were. Don't leave me alone. I can't lose another member of my family - not you! I won't survive it! There is still so much ahead of you, your entire life. You have so much potential. You can become one of the most important scientists of our time. You probably would be already if the Vocorder wasn't classified. Please, kiddo, don't leave me. You have to fight! Please, Lucas, fight!_

That was enough for the teenager. He couldn't listen to the captain any longer. Tears had started again. He knew that he had to make his decision now. And he did.

* * *

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	13. Chapter 13

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 13

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to wolenczak2004, Swasti, KatKnits00, Nerene, dolphinology and TeacherTam for their reviews.

wolenczak2004: Thanks! (Hands you a hankerchief.)

Swasti: Thanks! Yes, poor Bridger!

KatKnits00:Thanks! Let's see if your guess is right…

Nerene: Thanks for all your thoughts! I think it's importend to have good memories in bad times.

dolphinology: Thanks! (Hands you also a hankerchief.)

TeacherTam: Thanks! I can understand your fellings for Jonathan Brandis very good. He will always have a spezial place in my heart too.

* * *

Dr. Westphalen was just getting ready to shock Lucas' heart again when the line on the heart monitor resumed its steady rhythm. "Thank god, Lucas!" The red-haired woman turned around to the captain. "Nathan, he's made it. His heart is beating again, and he's breathing on his own."

Those who weren't needed any longer left. Only Dr. Westphalen and Bridger stayed behind with the unconscious teenager. Nathan moved over next to Lucas' bed and sat down on the chair. Kristin stayed for a moment with the two, and after that, she went into her office.

* * *

Ten minutes later, Lucas' eyelids began to flutter. As they opened, his eyes met the captain's still-wet ones.

Bridger smiled at Lucas. "You gave me quite a scare, Kiddo."

The teenager nodded weakly. "I know... I'm sorry," he whispered.

Nathan shook his head. "There's nothing to be sorry about. It's not your fault."

Lucas smiled at the captain's comment. "I've been fighting."

Captain Bridger looked confused. Did the teenager even know what he was saying? "What do you mean you've been fighting?" Nathan saw that the boy was straining to stay awake.

"I wish I was your son..." Lucas just couldn't keep his eyes open any longer and drifted back to sleep.

"Lucas?" Bridger realized that it was a futile effort; the teen needed his sleep. Later, when he woke up, then he could ask about what the young man meant. Lucas had said that he wished he was his son. It seemed that the teenager had really heard him when he had been sitting at the boy's bedside, speaking to him.

Nathan just had to smile. Lucas felt the same about him.

* * *

Only 8 hours later, Lucas woke up again. While he'd been sleeping, the seaQuest had already docked at a UEO headquarters, and the terrorists had been removed from the boat.

But the whole time, Bridger hadn't left Lucas's side. The teenager was rubbing his eyes, and Captain Bridger smiled at the gesture. "Are you really awake now?"

The genius grinned. "No, but I'm as close to it as I can be at the moment."

"How are you feeling?" asked Nathan.

The computer genius thought for a moment about the question. What was the best way to answer that? "First of all I was beaten up, then I was shot, and then I was dead for a minute. But aside from that, I feel great!"

Nathan Bridger was speechless. He hadn't expected the teen to know that his heart had stopped beating. "You know that your heart stopped beating and that Dr. Westphalen had to start it again?"

Lucas nodded. "Yes, I was aware of everything."

Bridger looked questioningly at his youngest crew member. "What do you mean exactly that you were aware of everything?"

The computer genius knew that he could trust the captain, and he wanted to tell the older man what he had experienced. "Do you want to know what happened to me when my heart had stopped beating?"

The captain of the seaQuest nodded. Lucas piqued his interest. "I would like to hear about it, but only if you really want to tell me."

The teenager smiled. "I wouldn't have asked you if I didn't want to tell you. I know that you'll believe me and not think I'm crazy. Or at last I hope so."

Bridger was stunned. Lucas trusted him, even though Nathan had made a mistake with Oliver and hadn't been friendly to the boy in the last few days. The blond teenager had been disappointed by his parents so often but was nevertheless able to trust other people. That wasn't natural.

Captain Bridger had expected that his relationship with Lucas would have been shattered because of everything that happened with Oliver. They had made their apologies to each other when they had been in the cell, but he still hadn't expected their relationship to be healed, that the young genius would give him so much trust. It gave him a warm feeling. "I will believe you!"

Lucas nodded again and smiled. "Okay. I think the moment my heart stopped beating, I saw a white, warm light. The light held so much comfort, peace, and love. It's difficult to describe... Suddenly, I saw the silhouettes of my grandparents in the light, and the nearer I got to them, the clearer I could see them. But they weren't happy to see me. That got me really confused. After all, I hadn't seen them for a long time and was very happy to see them."

Bridger nodded. A few weeks ago, Lucas had told him about his grandparents and how much he had loved them and missed them. His grandparents had been there for the boy when his parents hadn't. "They weren't happy to see you because that meant you were dead."

Lucas nodded. "Yeah, kind of. They said it was too early for me, that I still had my whole life ahead of me and that I would do so many things." The teenager thought back on the conversation. "I didn't want to believe them. After all, I was already dead. But they explained to me that the decision was in my hands, that I could still choose life and fight for it. But I wanted to stay with them."

Nathan was listening attentively to the teen. What the boy had just said made him sad. Lucas wanted to die more than to live. There was nothing that was really holding him to his life. But then, Lucas was here; that meant that he had changed his mind for some reason.

"They wanted me to think about my life. And I thought about a lot. I thought about things that were important to me but also things that I never want to go through again. In my opinion, the bad things outweighed the good ones. I wanted to die."

Captain Bridger looked Lucas in the eyes. "And what made you change your mind? Why did you decide on life?"

The young man smiled. "My grandparents made me realize that my parents aren't the only thing in life, that there are other people I'm important to. Then they said that they would give me one more thing to think about, and after that, I had to make my final decision. Suddenly, I was back in Medbay. I saw myself lying in this bed, and I saw how Dr. Westphalen, Ben, and the others were fighting for my life. That showed me that they wouldn't let me go so easily, that I meant something to them." The teen took a short pause. "And then I saw you, Captain. But the unbelievable thing was that I could hear your thoughts in my head. It was as clear as if you were saying it to me. I think that was the moment were I truly understood deep down in my heart that my parents weren't the most important thing, that I really mean something to others, even when my parents don't care about me. And so I decided to fight for my life. To fight for me, to fight for my friends, and mostly for you..." Both Lucas and the captain had tears running down their faces.

Bridger gave the teenager a gentle hug. "You can't imagine how happy I am because of your decision."

Lucas smiled through his tears. "Oh, believe me I can. Don't forget that I heard your thoughts in my head."

Nathan wiped away his tears. "I don't think I'll ever forget this, and I'll always be thankful to your grandparents for what they did!"

The teenager thought for a moment. "I was serious about what I said the last time I woke up. I didn't just say that to make you happy. I really wish that I was your son."

The captain's smile was huge. "Thanks, Kiddo. You know that I feel the same way. And I have thought a lot about this since you said it that first time. If you really want it, I would like to speak with your parents and ask them if I could have custody of you. They would still be your parents, but I would have legal responsibility of you. What do you say?"

For a moment, the computer genius was speechless. Then, he started to smile. "I would like that. But I don't know what my parents will say to that. I think it would be best if you asked my father because I have no idea where my mother lives at the moment with her boyfriend. I've been trying her old number for weeks, but it isn't working. Maybe my father knows where she is."

Bridger nodded. "I'll take care of it right away!" Nathan stood up. "See you later, Kiddo!"

"Yeah, see you later." Lucas tried to find a more comfortable position to lie in. He was exhausted, but he didn't believe that he would be able to get any sleep at the moment. He was just too nervous about his parents. Who could tell how they would react?

* * *

To Be Continued …

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	14. Chapter 14

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 14

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to Swasti, TeacherTam, wolenczak2004, KatKnits00 and dolphinology for their reviews.

Swasti: Thanks! Yeah, I wanted that Lucas remebered what he had experienced.

Teacher Tam: Thanks! I understand what you mean. I feeled the same way during the translation. Because of Jonathan Brandis I think I could never kill Lucas in one of my stories. (Great, with this statement I have probalply ruined all of my future cliffhangers, but who cares?)

wolenczak2004: Thanks!Beliefing is always importend.

KatKnits00:Thanks, you will read what will happen because of the custody.

dolphinology: Thanks for your kind words.

* * *

Captain Bridger was sitting in front of the Vidphone in his cabin, talking with Dr. Wolenczak. Nathan had already told him what had happend on the seaQuest and what Lucas' condition was.

During the conversation, Bridger realized that the blond teenager actually did mean something to the famous scientist and that the man just couldn't show it to his son; he didn't know how to talk to the boy. How would Lawrence react to his question?

"And he is really out of mortal danger?" asked the scientist.

Bridger nodded again. "Yes. Dr. Westphalen, our chief medical officer, assured me of that. And besides, I would have never left him alone in Medbay if that wasn't the case."

Lawrence looked relieved. "That's good. Tell him I said hello."

"Oh, I will, but that's not all I wanted to talk to you about. I have a request."

Dr. Wolenczak raised one eyebrow. "What kind of request?"

"You know that Lucas currently spends more time with me than with you or your ex-wife."

Wolenczak nodded. "Yes, naturally that's because of his work." Lawrence was getting a strange feeling about this.

Captain Bridger looked into the Vidphone screen, directly at the scientist. "We both know that this isn't only work related. I would like to be granted legal custody of your son."

Dr. Wolenczak was silent. He didn't exactly look surprised about this request. After a moment, he started to ask his own questions. "Does Lucas know this?" Bridger nodded with his head. "What has he said about it?"

"He has agreed."

This time, Lawrence's silence lasted longer. It was some time before he spoke again. Finally, he nodded. "I think I've seen this coming. I know that my son means a lot to you. I can tell when I read the reports that you send us regulary."

Bridger looked stunned. Lucas had always thought that his parents didn't read the reports. But, it seemed that his father did. The blond teenager really meant something to his dad.

Lawrence smiled at the look on Nathan's face. "Yes, Captain, I do read the reports. Not always immediately, but I read them. Could you please give me some time to think about this? I have to talk with Cynthia about it. I can't make such a decision alone."

Nathan nodded. "That goes without saying."

"Good. I'll call you back in about an hour. Goodbye."

"Goodbye." Bridger sat in front of the blank screen for a few more minutes. That hour would be one of the longest of his life. Slowly, he stood up and walked towards Medbay.

* * *

When Bridger entered Medbay, he saw that Lucas was sleeping. Lt. Krieg walked by Medbay and saw the captain standing in the doorway.

"Why don't you go and sit down next to him?" asked Ben.

Nathan smiled. "I don't want to wake him."

Krieg looked curiously at the captain. "So you're just standing here watching him?"

Bridger nodded. "Yes."

The lieutenant shook his head. "You look like you're afraid that he'll run away or that he'll be taken away from you."

The captain looked at the younger man. "Yes, but not in the way you think..."

Krieg was confused. "How do you mean?"

"Forget it, it's nothing."

"Okay. After all, Dr. Westphalen confirmed for me that Lucas will be fine He really gave me quite a scare. He gave us all a scare. I don't know if I've told you, but he is like a little brother to me. I really mean that seriously, it's not just something I say without meaning it," affirmed Krieg.

Captain Bridger looked at the lieutenant. "I know. I think it's good for Lucas that you are on board. When he's with you, he acts more like his real age. But please, don't draw him into anything illegal; I don't want him having problems with the police because of you. I don't actually like to admit that you're good for Lucas, but it's true. Just don't tell anybody what I said, I'll deny everthing!"

Ben was speechless. Everyone just acted like all he did was get the teenager in trouble and was a bad role model. That the captain was now opening up to him and speaking so freely surprised him.

For some time, both stood in the doorway, observing the youngest crew member. After that, Lt. Krieg turned around and went back to work.

* * *

To Be Continued … In two more chapters.

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	15. Chapter 15

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 15

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to dolphinology, wolenczak2004, Swasti, KatKnits, TeacherTam and Lynnp for their reviews.

dolphinology: Thanks! I think the relationship between Lucas and his parents is really difficult and strange. So everything is psosible.

wolenczak2004: Tahnks! Here is more…

Swasti: Thanks, let's see what Lawrence really has to say…

KatKnits00:Thanks!

TeacherTam: Thanks! I totally agree with you about the Relationship between Krieg and Lucas. It's really sad that Krieg wasn't in the second season.

Lynnp: Thanks! You will here a little bit more about Oliver in this chapter.

Reviews and feedback is always welcome.

* * *

Exactly one hour later, Captain Bridger was back in his cabin, waiting for Lawrence Wolenczak's call. A few minutes later, he looked at his watch. Why wasn't the scientist calling? Nathan got more nervous with each passing second.

To distract himself, he tried to think of something else. The first thing that came to his mind was Oliver and his parents. First, he had planned to tell the Stevens what had happened with their son himself, but Admiral Noyce had said that that wasn't such a good idea. Bill thought that it would be better if an expert spoke with Oliver's parents face to face. There would be also a psychologist going with the expert.

After some thought, Bridger also agreed that that would be the best way to handle the situation. After all, he could only give them a call on the Vidphone; sometimes it was just better to talk in person.

His thoughts moved on to the terrorists and his nephew. Neither Ford nor Crocker had been able to get any information out of them. They still didn't know exactly what the terrorists had wanted with the seaQuest. There would be a big trial coming in the near future.

Finally, the Vidphone rang. Bridger immediately touched the answer button, and Dr. Wolenczak's face appeared on the screen.

"Hello, Captain. I have now spoken with my ex-wife," said Lawrence.

Nathan felt like he was sitting on pins and needles. "Were you able to come to a decision?"

The scientist smiled. He could clearly see how anxious the captain was. "Yes, for once were able to agree. Cynthia and I know that we're terrible parents, but we love our son, and we are proud of what he has become. With that being said, we never manage to give him what he deserves. We can't even tell him how much he means to us. We disappoint him at every turn; we always put our needs much higher than his. We know that, but we still do it all the time and probably will for the rest of our lives. The littlest things turn into huge arguments. Can you remember when you insisted on going to dinner with me and Lucas?"

Bridger nodded; he could remember it very clearly.

"It always turns out that way. Even if we put forth the best effort possible, it always ends in a big fight. Perhaps Cynthia and I have neglected Lucas so much that something between us has been broken. And our divorce has also been a burden to Lucas. We each had the opinion that the other one would have have more time to care for our son. We both wanted to shove him to the other. And Lucas has often heard how his mother and I have argued. There were no days before the divorce when we weren't arguing. And during the divorce, we still argued; who would get this, who whould get that, and mainly who would care for Lucas. But he's probably told you about everthing."

Nathan nodded. "He hasn't told me _everything_, but quite a few things. For example, he's never told me that you were arguing about him." Bridger thought about it. No wonder that the teenager really hated arguments.

Dr. Wolenczak continued. "Finally, we agreed that Lucas would stay with my ex-wife. The whole time Lucas was staying with her, I don't think I called him even once. I also forgot his birthday. He tried to call me a few times and left messages for me, but I never responded. After some time, Cynthia met another man. Maybe you can imagine how Lucas was really in her way then. Oh, by the way, his name is Gary. Gary and Lucas can't stand each other; they don't get along at all. So, my ex-wife called me and begged me to take Lucas. But, I didn't want to. I couldn't take him because of my World Power project. I don't know what I would have done if I hadn't been able to place him on the seaQuest. I'm sure you think terribly of us, and you have every right to. We have done too many bad things to our son. And, therfore, we have decided that for once, we will do what is best for Lucas and consider his wishes. I know that you love our son like he was yours and don't treat him as a stranger. You will treat him well. Cynthia and I have decided that you will have legal custody of Lucas. We will get the paperwork done as soon as possible. We owe him that. He'll finally have the life he's earned..."

Captain Bridger could only say two words. "Thank you."

Dr. Wolenczak shook his head. "You don't need to thank us, and Lucas shouldn't thank us either. Cynthia and I are finally doing the right thing. We have realized our mistakes and don't want to stand in the way of our son's future. Maybe, in a few years, we can sit down with Lucas and talk about everything. But now, it's not possible for us. We'll send you the paperwork. I do have one last favor to ask you."

"What is it?" asked Nathan.

"Could you still send us the reports about Lucas? We really want to know how he's doing. But please, don't tell him you're doing that."

Captain Bridger looked curiously at the scientist. "Of course I can still send you the reports. But why shouldn't he hear about it?"

Lawrence groaned. "Even if we have been bad parents, we know our son a little bit. If he knew about this, he would feel guilty. But we don't want that; he has no reason to have those feelings. We want him to enjoy his new life without worries."

The captain of the seaQuest nodded. "I think I know what you mean."

The scientist bowed his head. "There's something else I have to tell you. Lucas is brighter than you think. He isn't 16, he's only 14 years old."

To Dr. Wolenczak's amazement, the captain wasn't surprised. "We already know about that. Lucas kind of let it slip out while everything was happening. And, he's already explained why his birth certficate has the wrong date on it. I can tell you, we were all really surprised by that news and a little disappointed."

Dr. Wolenczak lowered his eyes again. "Please don't be mad at him! Cynthia and I made him do it. I was the one who ordered him to hack into those records. On his own, he would have never had the idea to change his records. He is too honest to do something like that."

"My crew and I aren't mad at Lucas because of that. It was quite clear to us that it was his parents' idea and not his. We were only disappointed in you," explained Bridger.

There were a few moments of silence. Then, Lawrence looked at his watch and sighed. "I'm sorry, but I have a very important meeting in 10 minutes. I really have to end this call. The whole thing has already taken too much time. Goodbye."

Before Nathan had a chance to reply, the screen went blank. Lucas' father had ended the conversation. The captain shook his head. Only a few minutes ago, the scientist had admitted that they were terrible parents and had even sounded remorseful. And then, he just ended the conversation because it had already taken too much of his time. Bridger could only shake is head. Maybe some people just couldn't change, even when they saw their mistakes and admitted to them. In any case, he now wanted to tell the teenager the good news.

* * *

To Be Continued …in one more chapter.

Written Spring 2003 / Translated Winter 2005


	16. Chapter 16 The End

**A Question of Trust**

Chapter 16

By Kiddo

_In Loving Memory Of Jonathan Brandis_

Disclaimer:

I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest." I also don't own the different characters like Bridger, Lucas, or Darwin. I'm not making any money with this story; I'm just writing for my own pleasure.

A spezial „Thank You" goes to Jackie for beta-reading and to dolphinology, Lynnp, KatKnits00 and wolenczak2004 for their reviews.

dolphinology: Thanks!Good to hear that you liked the conversation.

Lynnp: Thanks! You will read how Lucas reacts.

KatKnits00:Thanks! Sometimes Lucas parents are like an enigma to me, even if I'm the one who writes about them and has the controll ;-)

Wolenczak2004: Thanks for your kind words.

And now on to the last chapter of this story:

* * *

When Nathan walked into Medbay, he saw that Lucas had woken up. The teenager was reading in his book, "The Gospel According To Larry." Somebody must have brought it to the boy. 

When Lucas saw the captain, he immediately closed the book. He was so nervous that he even forgot to put the yellow paper back at the page where he had stopped reading. "Have you talked to my parents? What did they say?" Unsure and curious, he looked at the older man.

Captain Bridger's face was serious.

The young man's heart stopped. This was it; his parents had of course said no, and now he would really have problems with them. Why had he expected that his parents would just give up custody of him to someone else?

Nathan looked at the blond boy. "I'm really sorry Lucas, but in the future, you will have to ask me for permission for everything, and you will be spending all future shore leaves with me."

For a moment, the computer genius just stared at the captain, completely speechless. Then, he began to understand what Bridger had just said. A smile started to spread across his face, and his eyes shone with joy. "Does that mean you really have custody of me? My parents really agreed?"

Nathan nodded and smiled. "Yes, I really have custody of you, and yes, your parents have agreed."

The teenager grinned. "This is so cool! And you're still sure that you want to do this?"

"Yes!" Bridger said this word with complete conviction. Both of their eyes fell on the book.

Lucas moved his eyes from the book to the captain. "You wrote in your note that you wanted to talk to me about the book."

Bridger nodded. "Yes, that's true. I read it and was quite impressed by it. The author wrote a really fantastic book."

The teenager took the book in his hand but didn't open it. "I think I know what you mean. I can remember very clearly how I felt the first time I read it. I can't remember how often I've read it since. But, I was also interested in what other people thought about the book, so I did a little bit of research."

Captain Bridger looked curiously at Lucas. "And what did you find out?"

The young genius turned the book around. "First, that a lot of people were impressed by the book. They recognized that even one person can make a change, that one person can make a difference. The Web site also inspired people with new ideas. For example, the Web site also told people not to buy anything on particular days, to say no to the whole consumer-terror. A lot of people did that and instead of going shopping, they went out into the world and built something there. There were even people who destroyed their credit cards. The book really made some waves. Did you know that there's also a sequel to this book?"

Bridger shook his head. "No."

"It's called 'Vote For Larry,' and this time, Larry tries to run for president. If you're interested, I can give it to you."

"That would be nice. But there's something in the first book that I want to talk to you about."

The teenager nodded; he knew what the captain meant. "You mean the faked suicide, right? And you still remember what I said when the Regulator was on board. But I can assure you that I would never do something like that. A suicide, even a faked one, is never a real solution. You only hurt the people that mean the most to you. One thing this all has shown me is that I don't want to die. I decided to fight for my life."

Captain Bridger looked satisfied. That was exactly what he wanted to hear. "Are you sure?"

The blond teen nodded. "Yes, I'm sure. I wouldn't have said so otherwise, Captain!"

Bridger smiled and twisted his face at the same time. The whole expression looked really weird. "But Lucas, please do me one big favor. Stop calling me Captain. It sounds like we don't know each other; it's so formal. You can call me Nathan, and if you don't like that, then you can come up with something else. I'm open to any suggestions!"

Lucas had to smile at the older man. "Okay...Cap!"

**THE END**

Written March 2003 / Translated January and February 2005

* * *

Information: 

The book "The Gospel According To Larry", written by Janet Tashjian, has nothing to do with seaQuest. I read the book some time ago and was really impressed by it. The Web site that is mentioned in the book is www . thegospalaccordingtolarry. com (sorry for the way this is written, fanfiction. net wouldn't let me post it the right way.)

At one point in time, the site actually existed on the Internet. But the last time I checked, I couldn't find it anymore.

In the beginning, I just needed a book that I could briefly mention in my fanfiction. But, when I got the idea to use "The Gospel According To Larry," I made the book play a bigger part. The book was written for teenagers, but I would recommend it to anyone; age doesn't matter.

In 2004, the sequel to this book was published in English, and it is called "Vote For Larry." I immediately bought it in English; I just couldn't wait until they translated it into German. And, I think that tells you how good these books are.


End file.
